Sarah Ikumu, a 15-year-old British-born Kenyan girl, has left many tongues wagging with her sensational performance at the “Britain’s Got Talent” (BGT) audition show Saturday.
A British A-level student born of Kenyan immigrants, Ikumu blew everyone away with her outstanding vocals when she performed an incredible rendition of “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going” by Jennifer Holliday.
Her version of the song was so fabulous that one of the BGT’s popular judges, Simon Cowell, pressed his golden buzzer before she could even finish the song to send her straight through to the semi-finals.
“It was quite incredible. For someone of your age to stand on this stage with all the nerves and all the pressure to absolutely – not just nail the song – you made it your song,” Cowell said.
Amanda Holden, another top panelist, branded Ikumu’s performance as “mind-blowing,” teasingly telling her that she is not allowed to have that much talent at her age.
All the four panelists unanimously applauded her performance and gave her their best wishes in her quest to become the next big pop star.
Young & Talented Superstar
Thanking the audience and the judges for their massive support and endorsement, Ikumu, who was accompanied by her father and mother, said it was a “dream come true.”
At 13 years of age, Ikumu won the Milton Keynes Young Musician of the Year Award, after delivering a stunning performance of the song “Think” by Aretha Franklin at the Midlands Teen Star finals.
“This is the first talent show performance that I have watched three times in a row. She’s amazing,” Brad Hokesvig reacted to Ikumu’s performance video on YouTube.
Ikumu’s family lives in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, where her mother works as a caregiver and her father drives an HGV (Heavy Goods Vehicle) truck. The young superstar is currently studying for her GCSE exams.
Scouted To Appear on the Show
Four days after her stunning performance, reports indicate that Ikumu was encouraged to audition on the popular “Britain’s Got Talent” by the show’s scouts.
According to The Sun, the teenage singer was asked to appear on the show after the scouts discovered her at a local event last year.
However, the producers of the reality show have come out to dispel concerns that the youngster could have been given any special treatment, saying she had to audition like any other contestant.
“As the only show of its kind in the country, we want to showcase the best talent around and therefore, we travel the length and breadth of the country to find the best talent and make them aware of the show and auditions,” a spokesperson for “Britain’s Got Talent” told MailOnline.
All in all, everyone, especially on YouTube where her performance video has already garnered close to 2 million views, seems to agree that the starlet has a budding career in music.
Watch her electrifying performance above.
