This article is from page 3 of the 2006-12-12 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 3 JPG
TEEN songbird, Susan O’Neill, from Rockmount Manor in Ennis will be looking to the Banner next Sunday night to vote her through to the next round of the You’re a Star competition.
16-year old Susan will be cheered on first and foremost by her parents, Jim and Helen, sister and brother Sharon and Eoin and her nana, Lizzy Neylon.
The Rice College student is currently studying for her leaving certificate but made time to polish her act enough to be chosen at the auditions in Cork when 12 people were picked to go forward out of the hundreds of hopefuls.
In further auditions and workshops in the RDS in Dublin ,the twelve were whittled down to six and the talented Ennis girl was one of the chosen ones who are now battling it out in the Helix in Dublin on December 17.
“Music is my life, I enjoy singing and playing, and I also write songs”, said Susan, who plays the guitar, the cornet and is now learning the piano.
The busy Ennis girl sings in the Ennis gospel Choir and was a member of the Ennis Brass band for six years.
On Sunday she will be singing Jeff Buckley’s ‘Halleuja’, a song which she loves.
“It would be so great to win this competition, to have a chance to record some of my songs professionally,” said Susan. “This is what I want to do. I want to be a performer and I’m not sure exactly what form that will take but I know that’s what I want to do.”
And to launch her on her way, Susan is asking for Clare people to vote for her on Sunday next.
If Susan gets through, she will be joining another Clare woman, Maeve O’Donovan from Ardnacrusha.
Maeve – who is still in secondary school – knew she was headed for a career in song after singing Sting’s “Fields of Gold” for her classmates when she was twelve.
As part of her personal profile on the show, she was filmed at home in Ardnacrusha.
If she won the record deal which is the big prize, Maeve says she would be “really happy because I’ve wanted this for so long. I’m deighted to get this far and I’m looking forward to getting to the final in the Helix.”
Both Banner contestants will be cheered on by everyone in County Clare.