Aspiring singers and musicians from Gower College Swansea were recently invited to a special acoustic competition, organised by student enterprise interns Shazia Ali, Rhys Cozens and Curtis Cana and Enterprise Officer Lucy Turtle.
Big Ideas role model and music industry expert Gill Taylor was invited to the Gorseinon campus to judge the competition.
Various acts took to the stage - a new singer who was performing in front of an audience for the first time, a female singer whose soft voice seemed to captivate the room and a duo whose rendition of Teenage Dirtbag had the crowd singing in unison.
After much deliberation, Gill named Sally Robinson as the most entertaining act and she was given Amazon vouchers as a prize.
“There is certainly lots of talent in Gower College Swansea," says Gill. "It was tough to pick one winner but Sally really did stand out with her unique voice and the way she interacted perfectly with the audience.”
After the competition, all the acts were rewarded - along with other music students and potential young entrepreneurs - to a ‘Meet, Eat and Greet’ enterprise session with Gill.
"This was a great opportunity for students to take part in Gill's workshop," says Lucy. "They really enjoyed the pizza and listening to Gill’s inspirational story about entering the music industry and working in A&R, tour booking and management. Gill also works with new, emerging talent and helps to guide their careers, fully utilising her extensive experience and range of contacts.”
“I was so grateful to meet Gill," adds Sally. "She gave crucial advice to the musicians with regards to performing in front of an audience and encouraged us to start thinking like an entrepreneur, how to treat your music as a business. I was extremely happy to win the contest and I’m now seriously considering a career in the music industry."
Thanks to photography student Stephanie Evans for images.