Young Singer Silences Audience As She Performs Heartfelt Audition

Feb 03, 2021 by apost team

For many grownups, singing in front of judges and a national audience would be a panic-inducing nightmare. Julliette Van Damme, a singer from Belgium, had to face these fears when she was just a kid after “The Voice Kids: Belgium” granted her an audition to sing on television in 2014 on the show’s first season. She selected Rachel Platten’s “Fight Song” for the opportunity, memorizing every word and note.

It doesn’t seem like Julliette allowed her nerves to mess her up during the audition, which you can watch below. She kept up her relaxed, bubbly attitude the whole time that she was on stage, even after being shocked at how close the judges’ chairs were. The chords to her song began to play, and Julliette took a deep breath. It was her time on stage and her time to show the world what she was made of! She started off singing her musical selection a little bit shakily. However, it didn’t take her long to find her way and tackle the song head-on. The judges listened carefully to the voice of this young girl, as she quickly pumped up the room. The judges waited until the final seconds of her song to make their decision.

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Would all three judges decide to turn their chairs? Would any of them? Or maybe they would all pass up the opportunity. As Julliette belted out the song, her parents stood on the sidelines watching eagerly. While the judges did seem to have a delayed reaction, the parents couldn’t do anything to help their daughter at that moment.

Are you ready to see Julliette’s performance for yourself? Check out the video below and listen to this rendition of “Fight Song,” which Julliette sings for her debut performance. You’ll see why her future seems so bright.

Although Julliette made it through the first round and undoubtedly has a career ahead of her, she unfortunately wasn’t able to take first place on the show. She faced tough competition from Mentissa Aziza, who won the competition, and runners-up Fiona Verbrugghe and Alessia De Simone. In the end, however, Julliette progressed quite far, securing her position as the second runner-up on Belgian musician Sean Dhondt’s team, along with Jens Broes. Despite Julliette’s loss, fans of her performance might want to know what the young, up-and-coming singer is up to these days, nearly seven years since her appearance on “The Voice.” Unfortunately, there isn’t too much information out there, but Julliette fans will find a handful of more informal performances on YouTube.

For example, in December 2014, shortly after the show had ended, Julliette performed live in Antwerp, Belgium, at a clothing store accompanied by violinist Koen De Nefski and a pianist. Surrounded by an enthusiastic crowd that claps along with the song’s beat, Julliette not only shows off her singing skills, but she also gives the kazoo a try, kicking off the track with a few hearty notes. Julliette's song of choice? French singer Zaz’s hit track “Je veux.” In contrast to her appearances on “The Voice,” this performance is more intimate and personal. Rather than a studio audience, we see a group of kids huddled together watching the performance. 

In several languages, viewers commented enthusiastically on the young woman’s cover. “Once More this little princess shines like a star filling the (hearts) of those willing to take time and listen to her wonderful voice with joy,” the top-rated comment reads. “And in so doing (listeners) send the sales of Kleenex through the roof as her captivated audience she'd tears of joy.”

Writing in French, another commenter chimes in by saying, “I want … even more French songs from (Julliette).”

In another notable video, the Belgian singer covers Ed Sheeran’s widely popular “A Team” at the Efteling theme park in Kaatsheuvel, Netherlands. Again, viewers were encouraging in the comments, with some saying that they found out about Julliette thanks to her appearance on “The Voice.” Plus, the fact that she’s performing on stage at a theme park goes to show that Julliette did gain some notoriety. 

For fans of these more informal settings and violin accompaniments, Julliette has a whole series of appearances with De Nefski that are scaled-down compared to her highly produced performances on “The Voice.” Many of them only have a few thousand views, and thus remain relatively undiscovered. And yet, the comments are almost always positive, indicative of the young woman’s talent.

Apart from De Nefski and Julliette’s duets, however, there remains very little information about the “The Voice” finalist’s life after leaving the show. The young singer does have a YouTube account with a single live performance, and she also has a few social media accounts, but whether Julliette is working on an album or another appearance on television remains to be seen. But perhaps that is to be expected, especially for such a young performer. At the end of the day, we’ll just have to wait patiently and see what she’ll do in the future.

For those who don’t know, “The Voice Kids” is an offshoot of the reality television singing competition “The Voice," except kids between the ages of 8-14 compete on the junior version of the show. Americans likely haven’t heard of the show since the U.S. doesn’t have a dedicated “The Voice” show for children. With that said, producers in countries throughout the world have launched their own franchises, including in Albania, Brazil, Colombia, Denmark, France, Germany, Lithuania, Mexico and in many more countries.

Some of the children that participate or go on to win on “The Voice Kids” in their respective countries later compete in the "Junior Eurovision Contest," a reality television competition put on by the European Broadcasting Union. On the show, which is a version of the original "Eurovision Song Contest," representatives from different countries compete against one another. The contest’s current 2020 winner is Valentina Tronel, an 11-year-old singer from Rennes, France. Like Julliette, Valentina participated in the French version of "The Voice Kids," though she, too, failed to place first.

Although Julliette may not have won “The Voice Kids,” despite her well-liked audition performance, Valentina’s journey from loser to Eurovision champion just goes to show that Julliette’s career is far from over.

We know you will want your friends to see this amazing video! We would also like to hear what you have to say about it so let us know in the comments! What do you think of Julliette's performance?