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A Mayobridge girl who has been singing since she was 6 is on her way to Italy after she was selected for the final of Tour Music Fest - The European Music Contest.
Twelve year old Naomi Gribben is a pupil of Our Lady's Grammar School in Newry and over the past year she has built up quite a following busking in Belfast when she's off. Last year she expertly took the lead role of Charlie Bucket and made it her own, in the School's production of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.
It's not hard to see why Naomi made the final when you check out her singing on her social media channels. She is certainly a very popular young girl with over 44,000 followers on Facebook with her video reels getting hundreds of thousands of views. Her singing of Celine Dion's The Power of Love has gained nearly 2 million views!
Naomi explains "I absolutely love singing. My nanny and grandad were both country singers so I think I got it from them! I love all types of music from pop to country to musical theatre."
Tour Music Fest is the biggest European contest for emerging Singers, Musicians, Rappers, DJs and bands. This year the final takes place in San Marino, Italy from 22-30 November and Naomi is the only finalist from Ireland.
She discovered the competition after one of her social media followers tagged her in it and she sent in a demo tape which was followed by a zoom call, and then a trip to London where she got to meet industry professionals on the regional judging panel.
"There were thousands of hopefuls that auditioned all across Europe so I was very shocked to learn that out of thousands i got picked as a finalist. There is only 10 in my category and I'm the only one from Ireland"
Factory. Photograph: Columba O'Hare/ Newry.ie
For someone so young she is already using her incredible talent to help others, last year fundraising over £1000 for a local man.
Naomi is very grateful to her singing teacher Fiona Flynn from Flynn Performing Arts who has helped her so much with her songs and technique. As well as taking part in the final there are also master classes available for the artists to take part in, something which will help Naomi enhance her skills.
She is so excited to be involved "I don't really get nervous because I just love singing so much. I'm so excited to stand on an international stage and sing for them! I'm also excited to meet other singers who love the same thing i do!"
The final judging panel is made up of top people from the industry and includes Kara Dio Guardi, a judge in American Idol who has collaborated with artists like Pink and Christiana Aguilera. Another judge is Mylious Johnson a producer who's worked with artists including Destiny's Child Jessica Simpson, Pink and many more.
"I feel very lucky to get this opportunity and experiences so no matter the outcome I'm just happy to be a part of it all." concluded Naomi.
Her mother Lorna added "We as her parents are so proud of her - she deserves to shine."
Check out her Facebook page at Naomis-music-page
