Courtney Hadwin

Courtney Ann Hadwin[1] (born 6 July 2004) is an English singer-songwriter. She rose to fame by competing on ITV's The Voice Kids UK 2017 and the 13th season of the NBC competition show America's Got Talent.

Courtney Hadwin
Birth nameCourtney Ann Hadwin[1]
Born (2004-07-06) 6 July 2004[2][1]
Hartlepool, England[1]
Genres
Occupation(s)
  • Singer
  • Songwriter
  • Musician
Instruments
Years active2014–present
Labels

Early and personal life

Courtney Hadwin was born to Ann-Marie and Paul Hadwin on 6 July 2004 in Hartlepool, in County Durham, England.[3] She lives in Hesleden, with her parents, younger sister Melissa, and younger brother Paul. She attended Hesleden Primary School[4][5][6] and until autumn 2018 studied at The Academy at Shotton Hall in Peterlee.[6][7] She has also trained at Shotton Hall Theatre School, Peanuts Master Classes, Kate Sirs School of Music[8] and Julie Miles' Vocal Ovation.[9]

Hadwin was a 2018 finalist on TV's America's Got Talent. 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.[10] She also gained notice when she was filmed performing Great Big World and Christina Aguilera's soaring duet "Say Something" in September 2015.[11] In April 2016, she won Hartlepool's Performer of the Year Award, and was a finalist in the Beyond The Lights award ceremony.[12] She was the opening act for Sister Sledge at a South Tyneside Festival concert in July 2017, where she sang for more than 18,000 people.[13] In January 2018, she sang in Southampton at an event for U-Support, raising funds for children with life-limiting illnesses and disabilities.[14]

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.[15] For her semi-final performance, she sang James Brown'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.[16]

2018–present: America's Got Talent

In her audition for the 13th season of America's Got Talent, Hadwin sang Otis Redding's "Hard to Handle". The performance inspired judge Howie Mandel to give her a Golden Buzzer, sending her straight to the live shows. Mandel compared Hadwin's singing to Janis Joplin.[17] The audition video received more than 50 million views on AGT's YouTube channel in its first five months.[18][19] Hadwin returned for AGT's quarter-finals on 14 August 2018, singing "Papa's Got a Brand New Bag" by James Brown. 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.[20]

In December 2018, Hadwin signed a record deal with Syco Entertainment and Arista Records.[21] Her first album appeared on 25 October 2019 titled "The Cover Sessions", which include live covers of "Sign of the Times" by Harry Styles, "Old Town Road" by Lil Nas X, "Sucker" by the Jonas Brothers, and "Someone You Loved" by Lewis Capaldi.[22] She has been described as "an exceptional talent with a voice and spirit well beyond her years."[23] When an interviewer asked her about her artistic influences, she said, "From Little Richard, James Brown to Janis Joplin, Mick Jagger.... It's a really long list!"[24]

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.[25]

References
  1. "Search Results for Civil Births in Birth, Marriage, Death & Parish Records". findmypast.co.uk. England & Wales Births 1837–2006. Retrieved 27 November 2018.
  2. "I've had a brilliant day today thank you so much to everyone that took the time to wish me a happy birthday #bestbirthdayever #birthdaygirl". Twitter. Courtney Hadwin. 6 July 2018. Retrieved 27 November 2018.
  3. "Courtney Hadwin Wiki Bio :: Age, Songs, Parents, Mother, Family Background". Marathi.TV. 9 February 2017. Retrieved 18 November 2018.
  4. Duke, Simon (13 June 2017). "Watch: Courtney Hadwin, the Peterlee school girl with the huge voice". Evening Chronicle. Retrieved 27 November 2018.
  5. Macdonald, Kenny (13 July 2017). "Inverness Granddad Is 'So Proud' Of Voice Kids Star Courtney". Inverness Courier. Retrieved 12 June 2018.
  6. Duke, Simon (13 June 2017). "Watch: Courtney Hadwin, the Peterlee school girl with the huge voice". Evening Chronicle. Retrieved 27 November 2018.
  7. "Mum of America's Got Talent star Courtney Hadwin speaks of pride after teenager singer lands record deal". www.hartlepoolmail.co.uk. Retrieved 9 April 2019.
  8. "Courtney Hadwin, Child-actor, County Durham". Mandy.com. Retrieved 27 November 2018.
  9. "America's Got Talent star Courtney Hadwin prepares for live shows". Hexham Courant. 9 August 2018. Retrieved 27 November 2018.
  10. "TeenStar – TALENT CONTEST | TEENSTAR 2015 NATIONAL GRAND FINAL". www.teenstarcompetition.co.uk. Retrieved 19 November 2018.
  11. Duke, Simon (13 June 2017). "Watch: Courtney Hadwin, the Peterlee school girl with the huge voice". nechronicle. Retrieved 20 November 2018.
  12. "Courtney Hadwin wins Performer of the Year Award | The Academy at Shotton Hall". www.shottonhallacademy.co.uk. Retrieved 18 November 2018.
  13. "Teenage singing star Courtney Hadwin wows judges on America's Got Talent". Archived from the original on 30 January 2019. Retrieved 23 November 2018.
  14. "The Voice Kids charity encore". Daily Echo. Retrieved 9 December 2018.
  15. "Courtney". Retrieved 23 November 2018.
  16. "Courtney". Retrieved 19 November 2018.
  17. Seemayer, Zach (12 June 2018). "America's Got Talent: 13-Year-Old With Social Anxiety Turns Into Janis Joplin When She Sings!". ET (Entertainment Tonight). Retrieved 1 February 2019.
  18. America's Got Talent (12 June 2018), Courtney Hadwin: 13-Year-Old Golden Buzzer Winning Performance – America's Got Talent 2018, retrieved 19 November 2018
  19. "Courtney Hadwin". NBC. Retrieved 19 November 2018.
  20. "AGT – s13 – AGT Live in Vegas". NBC. Retrieved 19 November 2018.
  21. Angermiller, Michele Amabile (18 December 2018). "'America's Got Talent' Rocker Courtney Hadwin Signs Record Deal". Variety. Retrieved 18 December 2018.
  23. Angermiller, Michele Amabile (17 December 2018). "'America's Got Talent' Rocker Courtney Hadwin Signs Record Deal". Variety. Retrieved 20 January 2019.
  24. Lipka, Carolyn. "Courtney Hadwin Speaks On 'America's Got Talent' Controversy". Forbes. Retrieved 9 April 2019.
  25. "America's Got Talent: The Champions", Nbc.com, retrieved 9 December 2018
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