Connie Talbot now all grown up

It was 2007 and it was the first year on the air of a new TV talent show. Created by Simon Cowell, the controversial judge from American Idol, Britain’s Got Talent was different from other shows in the sense that it is open to anybody. That means old or young, singers, dancers, acrobats, animals like dancing dogs, etc.

The winner that year gave credence to the criteria. It was Paul Potts, an untrained tenor, a bit on the corpulent side and well-passed the age of singing idols. But he could belt out Nessum Dorma hitting the right notes and with total emotion and he won the competition.

Said to be close to Potts in the judges’ tabulations and who was therefore the competition’s runner-up was a girl named Connie Talbot. She was then a self-assured six-year-old with missing front teeth who charmed everybody with her bright smile and a sweet rendition of Over The Rainbow. It proved to be a most auspicious beginning. Connie has not stopped singing since that night.

Connie is now 16 years old and she has not only grown up, she is now also prettier and more talented. Just like her parents, Gavin and Sharon, intended she tries to keep a normal, well-balanced life between home and career. She is very close to her family. She has a brother named Josh and a sister named Mollie, who is now married and lives away from Connie and her parents. She dedicates her composition This Is Home to Mollie.

Connie has two dogs, Minty and a puppy named Bobby. He is the dog featured in her music video for the song Mr. Blue Sky from her Gravity EP. She plays netball in school and she is studying piano and guitar. Despite her heavy schedule, she is at the top of her class. She makes time for her songwriting on her free nights after school.

Connie is one of the few Britain’s Got Talent discoveries who remain active in show business. The other well-known ones are Potts, the male group Collabro and the sensational Susan Boyle. Connie has toured Asia twice for performances and she has now released five albums. Her latest is titled Matters To Me.

Now, Connie has a natural feel for pop music and approaches her songs with a light touch that is easy on the ears. Matters To Me is very nice. But it is most notable because it showcases Connie’s maturing talent as a songwriter. The first single out is Shut Up (Move On) which Connie co-wrote. This was followed recently by another one of her own compositions, I’m Over You. Then among the other cuts included in the album are Dream Out Loud, Those Days, Teenage Chemistry, Gravity, Matters To Me and This Is Home, all of them songs, written or co-written by Connie Talbot.

She may have already been singing for 10 years but it is at this point in her career when Connie will be gauged as an artist. She is 16, on the verge of adulthood. There are no problems as far as her singing is concerned. She sounds great in anything. The fact that she is now developing serious songwriting skills though can make her bigger than she ever imagined.

The other contents in the album are a really motley lot. I find listening to these songs together rather strange but I guess these choices were made to show off Connie’s versatility. And she proves to be very good with all of them. 

These are Roar, the big hit by Katy Perry; the Nat King Cole classic When I Fall In Love; Inner Beauty, a composition by pop singer Judy Tzuke with Indecent Obsession member Graham Kearns; I’ll Be There, the big hit by The Rembrandts, now better known as the theme from the iconic TV series Friends; and Don McLean’s Vincent.

Incidentally, aside from her music, Connie is also popular on the Net due to her show Connie Club. This is a make-up channel on YouTube where she shares beauty tips with girls. Her make-up on the cover of Matters To Me was a recent big discussion topic. By the way, she looks really great in a classic beauty way on the CD cover.