Joel Corry is known to music fans around the world as the mastermind behind tunes like “Lonely” and “Head & Heart.” His breakout single; “Sorry” broke the record for the most Shazamed track, and these three singles alone accumulated more than 2.7 million sales worldwide.
But, before the music came the muscle. In a recent interview, Corry opened up about fulfilling his dream of becoming an M&F (UK) cover model, and how success in the fitness realm has led to dominance over the dance floor playlist.
The North Londoner’s relationship with fitness and bodybuilding began in the gym when he found this space to be a great place to clear his mind. Corry continued to train throughout his time at University, working out up to six-times per week, and later shot to fame in MTV’s Geordie Shore.
In terms of competing, Corry came top 3 in the 2015 WBFF London, and by 2016 had earned his pro card during the WBFF Miami Pro & Elite. After further successes, and a rocketing career as a DJ and music producer, May of 2000 saw Corry’s countless hours of lifting weights and calculating his macros pay off when he was featured on the cover of the U.K. edition of Muscle & Fitness. Corry shares how fitness continues to fuel his success.
Joel Corry
Joel Corry Credits Fitness and Bodybuilding for Strengthening His Winners’ Mindset
“It is the hardest thing I’ll ever do. Dieting to the point of almost starving, while training, while working,” said Corry, Speaking to Joel Warrner in a recent interview for ‘Unfiltered Extra’ on YouTube. “And those preps for the competitions, they’d go on for four or five months and they made me so mentally strong that anything else will never be harder than that … How can I fly around these many countries and do these many gigs with this crazy schedule? I think the resilience comes a lot from doing those fitness competitions for that many years where nothing will ever be as hard as that. And going through that, it’s almost like scarred me, but in a positive way. So, I look back on that whole era of my life when I was doing the bodybuilding and the fitness as a huge, huge positive thing for me that I’ve used later in my life, in my music career and the music industry. That sort of mental strength and resilience coming from doing those competitions has helped me for sure.”
For Corry, striving for the best physique taught him to tackle challenges head-on. “I wanted to be the best. I wanted to be the best man,” he exclaims. “And, I was like, even though I didn’t really have the best genetics, well, there was people (with) better genetics than me. I just believed I could always outwork them. I had this obsession in my mind. I was like: ‘Well, listen, you might have better genetics, whatever, but you are not going to work harder than me.’ And you know what, I did well in those competitions…And, eventually my dream was always to get on the front cover of Muscle & Fitness, and I got it.”
Undoubtedly, competing and fitness modelling became a formative aspect of Corry’s life that he still treasures today. “I’d look back on it fondly,” he reflects. “For me, it was very competition driven. I was obsessed with wanting to get as shredded as possible.”
Joel Corry Mixes His Music Between Gym and Dance Floors
For many, a workout is a chance to escape the work environment, but nowadays, Corry finds that the gym is the perfect space to perfect his craft as a producer. “So, I find when I’m in the gym, everything in my brain is firing,” explains Corry. “So, I’m actually in between sets, making notes on my phone, the things that I need to do, things that I could be doing better. Ideas that I’ve got when I’m in the gym working out, it’s all triggering.”
Corry is able to perfect his muscle and music at the same time when in the gym. “And, even when I’m in the gym training, people ask: ‘What music do you listen to?’” he shares. “I actually listen to music that I’m working on because when I’m in the gym, and I’m working out, it’s almost like you’re not focusing too much on the actual track. It’s kind of just like reference listening. I find it a really good way for me to identify things that need to be fixed on the track. And, I’m making notes. It’s mad, and then I go to the studio and apply those notes. But a lot of it comes from listening to it when I’m working out. So, it is a real big thing for me.”
Joel Corry’s Personal and Career Successes Are Anchored in Fitness
“So, that workout for me, going back to me having my daily routine, wherever I’m in the world, it’s my anchor,” he says. “So, I get in the gym, do my workout, do my cardio, come out of the gym. I’m like right: ‘Box-ticked, what’s the other task I’ve got to do today?’ And, it’s all anchored back to that workout as the first part of ticking those boxes for the day and staying productive, staying on my flow. Even sometimes when I feel so tired and I’m jet-lagged, and I’m literally dragging myself to the nearest gym in some state in America, when I come out of there, I feel like a new man. I’m like, right, I’m ready. It is such a mad thing what exercise does to me mentally. And, I remember back when Covid hit and the thing that hurt me most was when all the gyms closed.”
Being forced away from the gym during lockdown made Corry realize once again that the mind benefits just as much as the muscle. “Now, it’s much more of a mental thing,” he says.
Joel Corry Invests In His Future By Making the Right Choices
Since he is no longer competing, and works late nights in some of the most glamorous clubs all around the world, Corry perhaps finds himself tempted by more bad influences than most fitness fanatics. Fortunately, he chooses close friends and quiet times over raging parties and sleepless nights. That’s how he stays toned while spinning tunes. Corry understands that being at the top of his professional life still requires discipline and sacrifice in order to stay on top. After all, his current success is the result of decades of hard work, huge financial risks, and countless miles travelled. His latest album, “Another Friday Night,” was released earlier this month and features bangers from the past long with fresh material. This multitalented stars’ ethos is one that should resonate with us all: “Surely, if I want something this badly, and I work this hard, surely it will happen.”