Courtney Hadwin is an English singer-songwriter. She rose to fame by competing prominently on

ITV ITV or iTV may refer to: ITV *Independent Television (ITV), a British television network, consisting of: ** ITV (TV network), a free-to-air national commercial television network covering the United Kingdom, the Isle of Man, and the Channel Islan ...

's '' The Voice Kids UK 2017'' and the 13th season of the NBC competition show ''

America's Got Talent ''America's Got Talent'' (often abbreviated as ''AGT'') is a televised American talent show competition, and is part of the global ''Got Talent'' franchise created by Simon Cowell. The program is produced by Fremantle (as well as distribut ...

''.

Early and personal life

She lives in

Hesleden Hesleden ( ) is a village in County Durham, England, south of Peterlee. The name is a combination of Dene and Hesle, which is from "hazel". The combined population of the five communities making up the parish was 14,429 at the 2011 Census. Gov ...

, with her parents, younger sister Melissa, and younger brother Paul. She attended Hesleden Primary School and until autumn 2018 studied at

The Academy at Shotton Hall The Academy At Shotton Hall is a coeducational secondary school in Peterlee, County Durham, England. It is a school for 11- to 16-year-olds and is a specialist Performing Arts College it was renamed from Shotton Hall School in February 2011. T ...

in Peterlee. She has also trained at Shotton Hall Theatre School, Peanuts Master Classes, Kate Sirs School of Music and Julie Miles' Vocal Ovation. Hadwin was a 2018 finalist on TV's ''

''. She previously appeared on the first series of '' The Voice Kids'' in the UK and afterwards on '' America's Got Talent: The Champions''.

Career

Early performances

In April 2015, Hadwin auditioned for her first singing competition at TeenStar in Newcastle, England, with her version of Bob Dylan's " Make You Feel My Love", and reached the competition's grand final. She also gained notice when she was filmed performing Great Big World and Christina Aguilera's soaring duet " Say Something" in September 2015. In April 2016, she won

Hartlepool Hartlepool () is a seaside and port town in County Durham, England. It is the largest settlement and administrative centre of the Borough of Hartlepool. With an estimated population of 90,123, it is the second-largest settlement in County ...

's Performer of the Year Award, and was a finalist in the Beyond The Lights award ceremony. She was the opening act for

Sister Sledge Sister Sledge is an American musical vocal group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Formed in 1971, the group consisted of sisters Debbie, Joni, Kim, and Kathy Sledge. The siblings achieved international success at the height of the disco era. ...

at a South Tyneside Festival concert in July 2017, where she sang for more than 18,000 people. In January 2018, she sang in Southampton at an event for U-Support, raising funds for children with life-limiting illnesses and disabilities.

2017: The Voice Kids UK

Hadwin blind-auditioned for '' The Voice Kids UK'', where she performed Tina Turner's " Nutbush City Limits". She was picked by Judge Danny Jones, who became her mentor on the show. During the battle round, she performed " Dancing in the Street" against Eboni Green and Hollie Firmin. For her semi-final performance, she sang

James Brown James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, dancer, musician, record producer and bandleader. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th century music, he is often referred to by the honor ...

's " I Got You (I Feel Good)". For her final performance on 16 July 2017, she sang the torch song " And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going", from the Broadway musical '' Dreamgirls'', before being eliminated as a finalist.

2018–present: ''America's Got Talent''

In her audition for the 13th season of ''

'', Hadwin sang Otis Redding's " Hard to Handle". The performance inspired judge

Howie Mandel Howard Michael Mandel (born November 29, 1955) is a Canadian-American comedian, television personality, actor, and producer. Mandel voiced the character Gizmo in the 1984 film ''Gremlins'' and the 1990 sequel '' Gremlins 2: The New Batch''. I ...

to give her a Golden Buzzer, sending her straight to the live shows. Mandel compared Hadwin's singing to Janis Joplin. The audition video received more than 50 million views on '' AGT''s YouTube channel in its first five months. Hadwin returned for ''AGT's'' quarter-finals on 14 August 2018, singing " Papa's Got a Brand New Bag" by

. For her semi-final performance on 11 September, she sang " Born to Be Wild" by Steppenwolf, then returned for the final show on 18 September to perform Tina Turner's " River Deep – Mountain High". On the results show on 19 September, she sang " Piece of My Heart" with rock band The Struts. Although she failed to win ''AGT's'' grand prize, she went on to Las Vegas to do five live shows with winner Shin Lim at the Paris Hotel and Casino from 2–4 November 2018. In December 2018, Hadwin signed a record deal with Syco Entertainment and

Arista Records Arista Records () is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America, the North American division of the Japanese conglomerate Sony. The label was previously handled by BMG Entertainmen ...

. Her first album appeared on 25 October 2019 titled "The Cover Sessions", which include live covers of "Sign of the Times" by

Harry Styles Harry Edward Styles (born 1 February 1994) is an English singer, songwriter, and actor. His musical career began in 2010 as a solo contestant on the British music competition series ''The X Factor (UK TV series), The X Factor''. Following hi ...

, "Old Town Road" by Lil Nas X, "Sucker" by the

Jonas Brothers The Jonas Brothers () are an American pop rock band. Formed in 2005, they gained popularity from their appearances on the Disney Channel television network. They consist of three brothers: Kevin Jonas, Joe Jonas, and Nick Jonas. Raised in W ...

, and "Someone You Loved" by Lewis Capaldi. She has been described as "an exceptional talent with a voice and spirit well beyond her years." When an interviewer asked her about her artistic influences, she said, "From

Little Richard Richard Wayne Penniman (December 5, 1932 – May 9, 2020), known professionally as Little Richard, was an American musician, singer, and songwriter. He was an influential figure in popular music and culture for seven decades. Described as the " ...

Janis Joplin Janis Lyn Joplin (January 19, 1943 – October 4, 1970) was an American singer and musician. One of the most successful and widely known Rock music, rock stars of her era, she was noted for her powerful mezzo-soprano vocals and "electric" stage ...

, Mick Jagger.... It's a really long list!" In 2019, Hadwin appeared as a contestant on NBC's '' America's Got Talent: The Champions'', where she performed her first original song, "Pretty Little Thing". She has been named as one of the 50 top contestants in all the '' AGT'' shows across 194 countries.

Discography

* 2019 ''The Cover Sessions'' * 2020 ''Happy Xmas (the war is over)''

References

External links

* *
Courtney Hadwin
on

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Courtney Hadwin
on Facebook
Courtney Hadwin
on YouTube
Courtney Hadwin VEVO
on YouTube {{DEFAULTSORT:Hadwin, Courtney English child singers People from Hartlepool People from Peterlee Musicians from County Durham America's Got Talent contestants Living people 21st-century English women singers 21st-century English singers Year of birth missing (living people)