A mum from Peckham has made it through to the next stage of hit ITV show The Voice.
Michelle John, who grew up in SE15 and now lives in Bromley, appeared on the singing competition on Saturday, January 14.
Millions of viewers tuned in at 8pm to watch coaches Sir Tom Jones, will.i.am, Jennifer Hudson, and Gavin Rossdale search for a superstar.
Michelle stunned with a rendition of James Brown’s It’s a Man’s Man’s World during this year’s second set of blind auditions, with judge will.i.am pressing the buzzer for her.
“Your voice grabbed me,” the judge said. “Your voice reached out and pushed the button. I didn’t push the button, you pushed it. Your voice hijacked me.”
The 43-year-old has already had an impressive career, backing stars including Eric Clapton, Annie Lennox and Carole King.
Growing up in Peckham, she would go to church with her mum and this is where her passion for singing began.
A mother to a teenage boy herself, Michelle describes her protective son as her bodyguard.
This year’s show promises to have more twists and turns from the infamous red chairs, with the coaches pitching against each other to fill their teams with vocal talent.
It stole the spotlight from Gary Barlow’s talent contest Let it Shine on Saturday, after more than one million viewers switched off the BBC1 show.
The Take That singer’s show had a peak audience of 5.7million on Saturday – down from the previous week’s premiere of 6.8million.
ITV rival The Voice pulled ahead with 6million after it was beaten by more than 400,000 viewers when the two shows first went head-to-head in a 25-minute overlap the previous Saturday.
To keep up to date with Michelle and to find out about her upcoming shows and appearances, visit her website or YouTube channel.