Though there are plenty of talent competition shows online, few people know just how connected so many of them are.
Although American Idol was one of the first big shows of its kind here in the United States, the people who won that show (or even appeared on that show) often went on to be judges on The Voice.
On the other hand, some of the producers of both of those shows have been judges on Idol, though there are connections upon connections between the shows that are there to discover.
As just one example, consider judge Olly Murs from The Voice UK.
For those who don’t know him, Murs is an English singer-songwriter who has sold millions of records worldwide.
Today, he’s a huge star who has all kinds of hit singles to his name. As mentioned, he also now judges one of these reality shows—but what many people don’t know is that even he came from a reality show competition as well!
As it turns out, Murs first came to national and international attention after auditioning for The X Factor in 2009.
As it turns out, it was clear from the very beginning that there was something special about Murs.
As he explains in his audition, he’s just a 25-year-old office worker who comes from Essex.
After he explains his hobbies an interests, he goes out onstage to introduce himself to the judges. As he explains, he hopes to become a famous pop star and sell international records.
Without much more ado, the DJ starts playing a Stevie Wonder backing track of “Superstitious.” Right away, Murs starts dancing around on the stage and trying to take control of the crowd.
From the very beginning, it’s clear there’s something special about Murs.
Before long he starts singing along to the music—and he has judge Simon Cowell smiling along.
Although it’s not a perfect performance, Murs isn’t afraid to make the iconic song his own and to put all of his energy into it.
While his voice is definitely good, his stage presence is totally unbeatable! Everyone in the crowd is enjoying what he’s doing and his confidence doesn’t let up at all.
When it’s all over, they give him a massive round of applause.
When the audition is finally over, the judges say that he definitely has some soul in his voice.
Going down the line, everyone says he is a natural born entertainer and that he has a great stage presence. After hearing everyone’s feedback, all four judges vote to give him the yes to continue!
As the series continued, Murs eventually finished second on the season of X Factor—but his story didn’t stop there.
After so many years, he was picked to appear as a judge on The Voice UK where millions of people still watch him!
In general, stories like these encourage us to follow our dreams—but they also are great trivia for anyone who likes these shows.
While it may seem like some stars appear out of nowhere, or that people become famous overnight, that’s basically never true.
In a lot of cases, there are plenty of hidden connections behind the scenes that propel everything forward in addition to talent. In any case, it’s fun to see how people get to where they are.
Congratulations to Olly Murs on all his success! Be sure to watch the whole audition in the clip below:
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