NZ's Got Talent Semi Final 2 Coming Up

NZGT Semi Final 2 Coming Up

Sundays 7.30pm on TV ONE

The New Zealand's Got Talent first Semi-Final set the bar high for the rest of the competition tonight, as six of the top 30 acts impressed the judges with their second acts. Voting lines are open, and will stay open until midnight on Monday. Then next week, we'll find out which two acts are heading to the Grand Final.

Also tonight, the second group of Semi-Finalists were announced, and they will take to the stage next Sunday. Their full bios are below.

Viewers are in for an amazing show next week, with a special guest performing... and it will not be her first time on the NZGT stage! Last year's winner, the incredibly talented Clara van Wel, will be showcasing her brand-new, debut album which is being released this week.

To celebrate this very special occasion, Clara's self-titled album is available to stream right now, exclusive to tvnz.co.nz. To listen, visit: http://tvnz.co.nz/new-zealands-got-talent-2013/exclusive-stream-clara-van-wel-s-debut-album-5632251

Semi-Final 2 Acts:

Gabriella Atkinson is a 13-year-old from Nelson, who sang a moving rendition of ‘Imagine’ by John Lennon at her audition. The budding singer, guitarist and songwriter originates from Pennsylvania, USA, and emigrated to New Zealand five years ago. Gabriella’s Dad, Kevin, passed on his musical abilities to his daughter, and the two are often found busking in Nelson in school holidays. They have also performed many small gigs together. She says; “My dream is to sing in front of millions of people who are screaming my name, and singing the lyrics to my original songs!”

James Lee gave one of the most memorable performances from the very first round of NZGT auditions. The softly spoken 31-year-old from Auckland, who emigrated here from South Korea 11 years ago, had the entire audience head-banging to Iron Maiden’s “Run To The Hills”. A trained chef, James has plenty of experience singing in a band, at festivals, as well as at church, and his favourite band is the glam rock group Stryper. He prides himself on the fact he can sing notes in four octaves; “This, I tell you, is most unusual”, and has been looking forward to performing on NZGT since last year.

M.D.M. stands for Michael (16), Daniel (15), and Matthew (12), three brothers from Auckland who performed “If I Was Your Man” by Bruno Mars and stole a few young hearts in the process. The trio work hard on their music and regularly busk on Auckland’s Queen St, where they have started building up a loyal following. Michael played guitar at their audition, but all three are learning instruments – Daniel plays saxophone, and Matthew plays the trumpet. While they’ve never had private singing lessons, all three sing in their school choir. Dubbed ‘the Beckham boys’ by NZGT producers, they love soccer just as much as music, and also put a lot of effort into their hair!

Brian and Sarah performed a captivating rumba to “Love The Way You Lie” at their audition, and brought a highly professional touch to the competition. The dancers met on the competitive circuit in NZ, and danced for rival studios before joining forces and working their way towards winning the Australasian Youth Latin American title in 2011. The 18-year-olds train for three hours per day. Sarah is also a trainee preschool teacher, and Brian had started a Bachelor of Commerce degree when made the decision to focus 100% on dancing, and his dream of competing on the international circuit. They plan to move to London take up a once-in-a-lifetime offer of training from international champion Karen Hardy. They entered NZGT so they could show other young Kiwis how much fun ballroom and Latin American dancing is!

Origin Dance Crew from Nelson are the only all-female hip hop crew in the competition, they reckon they’re among the best crews in the country, and they can’t wait to perform in front of judge Cris Judd once again in the Semis. Origin are; Mikaela Cooper (14), Jorgia Marsh (15), Meila Wilkins (17), Hana Morris (15), Hayley Barnett (5), and Ashley Belk (18). All students, the girls are extremely dedicated, practicing together several times per week for hours at a time. And the hard work pays off, as they have placed in the top three at the National Hip Hop Championships in Wellington for three years running. Their proudest moment to date is representing New Zealand at the 2012 Hip Hop Unite World Championships in Holland and coming fifth!

New Zealand's Got Talent, the second Semi-Final, screens next Sunday 27 October at 7.30pm on TV ONE.

ENDS

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