A young girl who had to be home schooled due to bullying, a drag queen, and a former Irish soccer star are among the contestants of the fifth series of The Voice of Ireland when it returns to RTÉ this Sunday, January 3.
Also in the first twelve hopefuls on this year's series are a fan of "Wizard Rawk", which is basically Harry Potter rock, a singer who once counted Phil Collins as a mentor, and one contestant who thought he'd never sing again after a brush with cancer.
Kathryn Thomas and Eoghan McDermott will be reprising their presenting roles and returning to the coaching panel are Una Foden, Kian Egan and Bressie and pop pixie Rachel Stevens.
.@UnaFoden really wants a girl to win the next series of @RTETheVoice @RTEOne https://t.co/v9r4gzwxPO
— RTÉ TEN (@RTE_TEN) August 14, 2015
The Voice of Ireland will feature seven Blind auditions from beginning this Sunday followed by four Battle auditions and the six final live shows until the winner is crowned during the grand finale on April 24 and given a recording contract with Universal.
Meet the first contestants . . .
20-year-old Kirsty Rose from Dalkey in Dublin left school in her Leaving Cert year due to bullying and was home schooled.
Stephanie Anketell (26) from Clare is the sporty type and played soccer for Ireland as a teenager until she tore her cruciate ligament.
Shauna Carrick (24) is from Blackrock in Dublin, works with a children’s choir and directs musical theatre, she loves Wizard Rawk which is basically Harry Potter rock.
21-year-old Jasmine Kavanagh from Newbridge, Kildare auditioned for the Voice before. She didn’t get through that time but she says she took the feedback on board and has come back stronger.
Carl Gillic (23) from Drogheda has played in bands for years and entered the Voice as his girlfriend filled out the form for him. Singing Jeremy from Pearl Jam will Kian the rocker (it says here) hit his button?
Nik McDonald (41) from London is another rocker on the show - singing Led Zeppelin’s Ramble On
Brenda Mangwandi (25) lives in Dublin but is originally from Zimbabwe, she has just finished a Master’s degree in Chemistry. Singing ET by Katy Perry.
Laura Whelan (19) from Clonsilla loves to busk, singing King by Years & Years.
2FM Wild Card Johnny Kohlmeyer (32) from Derry auditioned for the Voice UK. He thought he may never sing again after going through an operation to have a cancerous lump removed from his throat.
Ashley Crowe (29) is originally from Manchester but has settled in Ennis with his family. When he was 13 he met Phil Collins who became a bit of a mentor to him, he flagged him as the next big thing. Singing Annie Lennox’s Walking on Broken Glass.
Febbie Manapsal (21) is originally from the Philippines and is now living in Donegal. Singing On my Mind by Ellie Goulding.
34-year-old Johnny Garvey from Galway. Johnny has lots of singing experience and performs his own take on Taylor Swift’s Shake it Off.
