Melksham young singer will reach for the stars at the O2

MELKSHAM teenager, Courtney Buchanan, has reached the national final of the new TeenStar competition by getting through the Southern England area final in Portsmouth.

The Southern Area Final took place on Saturday 18th May, after progressing through preliminary rounds in Fareham. The competition for places was very intense with only four of the 31 performers going through on the judges’ vote and a further one from an audience vote.

It was a nail­biting experience for Courtney and her supporters as she had performed seventh on the bill and the show was over two hours long with some stunning acts.

Courtney performed a cut­down version of ‘Jar Of Hearts’ to a simple guitar backing track. It was a beautifully emotional take and silenced the huge crowd with its honesty and simplicity. It clearly impressed the judges too and there was no prolonged agony when Courtney’s name was announced as the first winner.

Her mum, Sally said “I’m so proud of her. She’s fabulous but I still can’t believe we will be seeing her perform at the O2 Arena in London!”

Mel Austin of mobsta promotions, who organises the monthly Pilot music nights where Courtney regularly performs, and who played and recorded the backing track for her at his Beanacre studio said, “I had a good feeling about her chances after the first round when the chief judge commented she was one to watch and then she won a ten-­session vocal coaching course after the second round in April.

“She is just a natural ­ wonderful voice and her personality shines through every performance ­ – real X­Factor material.”

TeenStar is the latest national competition run by Future Music, following on the success of Open Mic UK and Live&Unsigned, which are for solo singers and bands, and which have kick­started the careers of Jahmene Douglas, Lucy Spraggan, Hatty Keane and Birdy.

Courtney, who is in year  10 at Melksham Oak Community School is also preparing for a lead role in the autumn musical, lives on Bowerhill and is currently working with Mel on her debut album, which will be a mix of originals and covers.

She performed at the recent Colerne Music Fund charity fundraiser and received some support from the fund with travel costs for TeenStar. She can be seen as one of six acts on a DVD of that show now on sale and she will be playing the main stage during the afternoon of Saturday 13th July at this year’s Melksham Party In The Park.

If you would like to buy a ticket for the TeenStar Final at the O2 Arena on Sunday 7th July, or if you feel able to offer some sponsorship to help with travel/ticket costs, please email melaustin100@gmail.com or sally.2004@btinternet.com.