Micaela hopes to wow judges on '˜The Voice'

A Londonderry teenager has confirmed she will be appearing on the new series of '˜The Voice' over the coming weeks.
Micaela McGillian.Micaela McGillian.
Micaela McGillian.

Micaela McGillian will be demonstrating her singing skills in the ‘Blind Auditions’ stage.

The 19-year-old will be hoping to catch the attention of the new judge line up, which has seen Dreamgirls star Jennifer Hudson and Bush frontman Gavin Rossdale joining veterans Will.i.am and Tom Jones, as the show moved from BBC to ITV 1 this year.

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Micaela, who comes from the city's Waterside, is currently a student of Performing Arts at the North West Regional College and a former pupil of Oakgrove Integrated College.

Micaela credits her experiences in Londonderry with having given her the confidence to try out on the show.

“Ever since I was in school I was always in choirs and singing in my local chapel as well gave me a lot of confidence to sing in public.”

Her confidence was further boosted, she said, through the opportunities that came about during the City of Culture year in the city. Back in 2013, Micaela took part in a BBC NI documentary called ‘Music City.’

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“We were mentored by lots of local artists and Katie B. That was a big deal for me,” Micaela added.

The City of Culture year also saw her singing at The Venue at Ebrington, supporting The Puppini Sisters, who famously sang with Michael Buble.

Speaking about that experience, Micaela said: “That was where it all really started with me and there’s actually footage from the show before I went on stage and I was shaking on the side of the stage I was so nervous.

"But then when I went out it all came so naturally to me and I thought, ‘I could do this all the time’.” With Micaela’s confidence boosted, she loves being on stage with anything performance base and her Performing Arts course involves dancing and acting as well as singing.

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Speaking about her own musical tastes, she said: “I love jazz, but I love taking modern pop songs and turning them into a jazz blues style, from the period 1920s to 1960s.” Micaela said her parents, John and Deirdre and sisters Bridgeta and Andrea, have been brilliant.

“They are always standing by my side and are really, really supportive,” she claimed. ‘The Voice’ airs on ITV tomorrow at 8pm. For further details on the show, check out: www.itv.com/thevoice.

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