FROM THE GOLDEN BUZZER AT JUST 13 YEARS OLD TO HER DEBUT SINGLE ‘SPELLBOUND’ | INTERVIEW WITH COURTNEY HADWIN

From America’s Got Talent aged just 13 years old to releasing your debut album later this year, it has been quite a journey for you Courtney! How does it feel to be doing it all on your own terms?

It feels scary, like really scary but it feels amazing to know it’s all coming from me and I’m being true to myself and it’s all real. Its not manufactured or fake and I haven’t been put into a position of being made to sound or look a certain way to fit in. I’m just extremely lucky that I met Kevin Bowe – my producer – he just gets it, gets me and that makes it a lot more reassuring knowing he has my back!

For those who don’t know your AGT journey, can you share how your first audition went and how far did you progress in the show?

I was on AGT when I was 13 and I got the golden buzzer from Howie Mandel proceeding to get all the way to the final it was a very crazy time of my life.

I do wonder, how did you end up appearing on AGT when you’re actually a girl from Durham?

I got a message from a guy who worked for the show asking me to send some videos over. Me and my family were very confused thinking it was a scam cause why would anyone want that from me. We took a call from him and they really wanted me to audition so they flew me over – it was so surreal! I had never been to America before and never thought I’d be auditioning for the show. I was so scared I was convinced I was gonna get buzzed off the stage and people just weren’t gonna get me at all.

So how has life been since that period of your life ended? Tell us how you got from there to now releasing your very first single?

It’s been one hell of a roller coaster coming into the music industry at that young of an age, you get taken for granted a lot without even knowing it’s happening. I’ve met a few characters along the way, but it’s like learning on the job, you learn to know who you can trust and who not to trust! I’ve been writing non-stop since I was 13 and at about 17 is when I finally got into the rhythm and lived a little to actually want to tell my story.

Your voice is sensational and has a really old school powerhouse, blues energy to it – where do you take your main influences? Any of which will surprise us?

I love a little bit of Tina Turner, Little Richard, a little James Brown.I love my old school music, or a voice that sounds like they are reaching into their souls when it’s just raw and the emotion is there I love that !!!

Tell us about ‘Spellbound’ – what does that track mean to you and why have you decided to lead with that track?

I think with this album I have been very vulnerable with it. I don’t think I have ever wrote this personal before and that’s scary !! Songwriting is the only way I can really express myself cause I’m really bad with communication and expressing my feelings, so some of these songs scare me a lot! “Spellbound” wasn’t actually supposed to make the album! I was in Minneapolis recording the album we had already created and we had 2-3 days left before I travelled back home so we decided to have some fun and write some cool stuff and it kind of just went from a riff on the guitar. At this point I was talking to someone back home and it was more of a situationship, I was putting way more effort into them than they were to me, they were very toxic and had many red flags that I was just looking past. All of this was building up in my head overthinking the situation and all turned into the lyrics base for the song. I completely forgot about the song and didn’t think anything of it til Kevin messaged me and said you need to hear this song we wrote. It was an instant of falling in love with the song and it was just obvious that it had to be the first song to introduce this album to the world.

What else have you got planned for 2025?

Obviously the album is coming out and I have a few singles, so plenty of music and working on some shows. Everything’s getting really exciting and I feel like finally the work is paying off 

If you didn’t audition for AGT all those years ago, what do you think you would be doing now?

I would love to think and hope that I would still be doing music in some form as it’s always been a big passion of mine and I would hope to think I never would have given it up! I did always say if it never worked out I would have maybe loved to train and be a vocal coach and teach other kids that had the same love for music.

Finally, your dream dinner party guests…you can pick just 3.

Hmm this is a hard one! Definitely Little Richard cause the stories he could tell would just be amazing and he seemed so funny!

Zendaya cause even to be in the same room I think I would pass out – she’s a godsess .

And Kevin Hart as he would be gold star entertainment.

Follow Courtney and keep up to date with her latest news and releases now.

Author