Em’s the voice

Wednesday, May 7, 2014

Staff member’s reality TV performance wins over stars

Linden Chuang
Assistant editor—digital, Adventist Record
Adventist Media Network
Wahroonga, New South Wales, Australia

An Avondale staff member’s rendition of a song from a musical has impressed coaches and the audience on a commercial television station’s reality talent show.

Emily Rex on The Voice

Emily Kilgour’s performance of “Pure Imagination” earned her a pass to The Voice’s “battle rounds.”

Emily Kilgour, whose stage name is Emily Rex, performed “Pure Imagination” from the 1971 film Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory during the first series of “blind auditions” on Channel Nine’s The Voice this past Monday (May 5).

The show’s website describes the performance as “hypnotis[ing] the coaches,” three of who turned their chairs around to watch Emily sing.

Hip-hop artist will.i.am, with whom Emily will work in preparation for the “battle rounds,” enthusiastically sang along, admitting “Pure Imagination” was his favourite song. Vocalist Joel Madden noted Emily’s “beautiful voice” and “beautiful song selection” while singer and songwriter Kylie Minogue described the performance as “confident” because “there was nowhere to run [or] nowhere to hide.”

“I wanted to do the best I could,” says Emily, the professional placement officer in the School of Education, “but it’s nerve-racking because everything is based on a first impression.”

Emily performs as part of Vintage Season with husband Jarel. The two released their self-titled debut album on Adventist Media Network’s Psalter Music label in 2011.

Former Psalter artist Anna Weatherup also made it through The Voice’s “blind auditions” in season two of the show this past year.

The winner of The Voice receives a recording contract with Universal Music.—Adventist Record