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Previous winners include Birdy!

The UK's largest talent competition for singers and songwriters travelled to Bedford this week to see the best acts in the Midlands area battle it out for a chance to play at the grand final at the O2 in January.

The competition was incredibly fierce on the day, and the levels of talent were clear to see for everyone at the Bedford Corn Exchange on Sunday 28^th November.

Here the judges give us some feedback from the event, but remember it could all change at the grand final.

Please note: views expressed by Judges are opinions and in no way reflect the views of Open Mic UK. 

The judges wereJudges Radio 1’s Ras Kwame; Singer from Vocal Tutor Jules Pretorius, City of Bath college music Coordinator Max Weedon; from Big Help Management Dutch Van Spall, Paul Stanborough, engineer and in-house producer with Guy Chambers,  and Future Music’s Chris Grayston.

Steph Coles;

Really great potential, coped well in the difficult opening slot. Good vocal technique but need to keep practicing – work on it, because you have something special.

Louise Hall;

Another talent to keep an eye on -  she handled a difficult song really well and with maturity beyond her years, judges felt confident they would see you again in the future when you’ve had a bit more practice. Well done.

Lacey;

Judges loved that you adapted the lyrics and made them your own, they also saw that you’d listened to their feedback since the regional round, good work, think you just need a bit more experience and you’ll be great.

Gemma Parr-Smith;

Another great act of the future- try not to pick songs that are too vocally complex for you,  sometimes you can lose the tone and your vocals suffer because of it.

Chelsea-Ullaina Low;

Really need to ensure your guitar is fully tuned, you sounded nice but the off key accompaniment spoilt it – might want to work on diction and phrasing a bit, but a nice voice.

 Colette Marie;

Great potential and nice to see you working the stage a bit, don’t forget to engage with the audience and keep working, you have raw talent.

Joe Jury;

Really nice sound, strong, confident and a fab tone to your voice, you also play guitar very well.

Augusta Urquhart;

Really nice and quirky performer, your personality shone through and helped you through , even thought you did show some nerves, would like to see your performance expressed more in the face.

Helena Deakin;

Confident start, remember to express your enjoying it. Nice voice, good confident image - but judges thought this might have been the wrong song for you, as your range was a bit strained in places.

Nikki Cubberley;

Nice voice and good passion for the song, but today the competition is so fierce that you have to really shine out – some more vocal training on dynamics will help you with this.

Harriet K;

Total star quality, an amazing voice for someone so young and a great song choice, in a few years time with more experience, you will be utterly brilliant.

Jade Donno;

Nice vocal control, but need to avoid being ‘shouty’ in places, this is something that more mic control  training will help with, don’t be afraid to engage with the audience a bit more either.

Lydia Lockyer;

Guitars worked well and your voice is full of sweet tones, but try not to let nerves get to you too much.

Rhiannon Dodds;

Good song choice, you played guitar really well and had a nice sounding voice; judges really want to see you try something original and maybe play standing up next time.

Rhianna Holt;

Nice idea with the combination of covers, but it just went a bit out of tune from time to time. Vocal training and working on your stage performance will definitely make you a contender.

Tom Millett;

Dancers detracted from your performance, which was a shame, you didn’t look comfortable up there and it showed, try to relax and really feel the song and the music.

Cassie Owen;

Really beautifully sung, lovely vocal tone! Judges felt your connection to the song but feel a lower key would have helped give you a much-more rounded vocal.

Dan Crossley;

Great performance and undoubtedly a strong powerful vocal, great passion and a good audience reaction – be careful not to oversing it though as that can alienate the crowd!

Ellie Gunter;

Beautiful voice and a well thought through image - spot on, judges all thought you were another one to watch out for in the future,  dancers did well not over-choreographed  or distracting, well done.

Issy Ferris;

Sweet tone and original song has much potential, another great image – but try not to let nerves get to you-needs a bit of training on breath control, but a lovely voice, and solid good performance.

Rosanne Hamilton;

Incredible vocal – almost Kate Bush-esqe! Almost flawless, but be careful not to push those high notes as you tend to go a bit shrill.

Ollie Rudge;

Nice voice, loved your tone and guitar playing, but the judges want to see something more original next time round, please remember to make more eye contact with your audience, they’re the reason you’re there!

Holly Masters;

Good image and a pretty voice, but the songs range just wasn’t right for you yet, which was a real shame – chose something more suited to your bright personality and age! Keep going!

George Redwood;

First cover was great - you clearly have a lovely voice, but you need a younger image, most important aspect of performing is to try to enjoy it, you looked like you weren’t having fun up there, which was a shame.

 Charlie Lake;

Big voice! Loved your performance and how you worked the crowd, judges could see you were having fun and that shone through.