- 9 hours ago
Your Song (2026) - Season 1 Episode 4 - Birmingham
Category
📺
TVTranscript
00:01We're travelling across the country to hear the people of Britain sing the songs that tell their incredible stories.
00:09Our mentors Sam Ryder and Paloma Faith will choose one singer from each city
00:15to perform at a once-in-a-lifetime concert at the legendary Hackney Empire.
00:21This week we've set up our Your Song stage right in the heart of the nation's second city.
00:27Over 40 million people visit the ball ring every year
00:30and today some of them are going to be lucky enough to perform on this very stage right here.
00:36Welcome to Your Song!
00:42Here we are in Birmingham, pal. Are you excited?
00:45I'm so excited. I'm actually kind of elated that we're in the ball ring
00:48which makes me think there's going to be a huge crowd.
00:52In the 16th century they used to use it for ball baiting. To catch it.
00:55But the name sort of stuck, called it the ball ring and they've put a ball.
00:59They call it the Guardian but a more loving name they gave it was Perry.
01:02Perry the ball is going to be watching over everyone singing.
01:05I've got some heavy metal facts for you.
01:07Go on.
01:07Right, so heavy metal birthplace is considered worldwide to be Birmingham.
01:12So you've got Black Sabbath, Judas Priest, Napalm Death.
01:15I don't think anyone's said Napalm Death on Channel 4 before but they came from here.
01:18Wow! It's like a real hub isn't it?
01:21Yeah, yeah.
01:21Who else has come from here? UB40, Duran Duran, Joan Arbor Trading and obviously our lovely Alison Hammond comes from
01:30here.
01:31I know.
01:31So she's like the jewel of Birmingham.
01:34Good morning everyone, good morning.
01:36You alright everyone?
01:37Welcome to Birmingham.
01:40I feel good about this city.
01:42Yeah.
01:42I feel like it's going to deliver.
01:43Let's go and have a look.
01:44Let's go.
01:46Paloma and Sam will be able to see and hear all of the singers who take to our stage.
01:52Whilst heading away beside the increasingly bustling ball ring.
01:56Wow.
01:57Birmingham has got the biggest crowd of any city we've been to.
02:01Give me a chair, we're a Brummie.
02:03Yay!
02:04We're a Brummie!
02:07Do you think it's because they know Alison's here and that she's the Queen of Birmingham?
02:12Maybe.
02:12We are so.
02:13Thanks for coming.
02:15The King's walking about here as well.
02:18It's all happening.
02:19But for our first performer.
02:22I'll do a whaley.
02:24An even more important guest is in attendance.
02:27I'm back.
02:29My name is Chantal.
02:30I am 34 and I am from Birmingham.
02:33We get on great, don't we?
02:34We do.
02:34We do.
02:35Just tell them I'm your favourite.
02:37I'm going to get in trouble if I say she's the favourite.
02:39You'll blur her out.
02:40Just say it quick.
02:44Hi Chantal.
02:45Hi Bab.
02:46Oh, she's a local.
02:48You're a Brummie.
02:49I am.
02:49I'm feeling straight away.
02:51Sit down Bab.
02:51So tell me about singing then.
02:53How did you get into singing?
02:55You know, singing was never my first love.
02:57I played football for years.
02:58No way.
02:59I played for Birmingham City for nearly ten years.
03:01Yeah.
03:02It's got Anne-Marie, you know, she was world champion karate.
03:06Really?
03:06Three times in a row.
03:08No way.
03:08And then just became a singer.
03:10That's so sick.
03:13The family are a big Birmingham City supporter, so it was always a privilege to wear the shirt.
03:18But I had to stop due to injury, which was really hard.
03:22That is when I think I started to sing.
03:26I'm very, very close to my Nan and Grandad.
03:30Me singing, I think it all kind of stems from their love for music.
03:34And getting me singing absolutely anywhere that there was a microphone.
03:38Hello, Grandad.
03:40How are you doing?
03:41Hello.
03:42How are you doing?
03:42Hello.
03:42He's nerve-wracking.
03:44Oh, hello, Grandad.
03:47Shouldn't have stuck him there.
03:50I am singing Run by Leona Lewis for my Grandad Roy.
03:55This has been our song for many, many years, and I want to sing it today in front of all
04:00of you, like, just to show you how much I love him.
04:03Chantal first performed Run for her Grandad over a decade ago.
04:08I said to you, I says, could you sing that for me?
04:11Okay, Grandad.
04:13And that was it.
04:13I know.
04:14Yeah, I'm filling up now, aren't I?
04:16My Grandad never really had asked me to sing a song specifically for him.
04:21I thought, well, this must mean something.
04:23I first heard it, and I thought, I like that.
04:27I like the lyrics when it comes to the part, light up.
04:30Yeah, that's the big thing. Light up my life.
04:31Yeah, I know, that's what you like to hear.
04:34That's what I like to hear.
04:36Chantal, she lights up my life.
04:40Oh, she's getting emotional, looking.
04:42Take a breath, babes, take a breath.
04:44A big breath.
04:44Do you want me to cover him up?
04:46Just close his eyes.
04:49I try not to look at him because he just sends me off.
04:52Aww.
04:53If she looks at him in this song, she's done for.
05:14Nice, slow vibrato.
05:16She's got real control, hasn't she?
05:31Oh, look at him.
05:33Wow.
05:33How can you not be moved, man, just watching this?
05:35Goodbye.
05:38I nearly do.
05:41When I sang it the first time, and to see his reaction.
05:47Light up, light up.
05:49I'd never seen anything like that before, for him to be so emotional and so connected.
05:55That just gave us our own thing that I haven't got with anybody else.
06:02Oh, nice.
06:02Come on, Chantal.
06:09I've got goosebumps, man.
06:12She's amazing.
06:13Louder, louder.
06:17Can we live for our lives?
06:22I think she deserves a visit outside.
06:24You can't not.
06:26It's too good.
06:27Send her my love, please.
06:28I will.
06:42As the years go on, the song means more, really.
06:46Because I'm getting older, he's getting older.
06:49I just love my granddad.
07:07Hello.
07:09You're amazing.
07:11We're all in tears here.
07:13Oh, that was so moving.
07:16It's really powerful.
07:18I think you don't credit yourself for your resilience.
07:21How you've achieved so much in one thing.
07:24Got injured.
07:24But you're sitting on that talent at home.
07:28It's a testament to the fact that we might not have met the best singer in the world.
07:33They're all hiding out there, aren't they?
07:35Yeah.
07:35In Birmingham.
07:36Yeah, Birmingham.
07:37Yeah, that's what it is.
07:44Our next performer hoping to light up Birmingham.
07:47My name is Lee.
07:48I am 34 years old.
07:49I'm from Cumberland, South Wales.
07:51Lee's about to bowl in here with the first moustache of the season as well.
07:55And that gives him point.
07:57Yeah, yeah, yeah.
07:58We'll also be singing in dedication to their granddad.
08:01How you doing, Lee?
08:02What is your song today?
08:03My song is Nessun Dorma from the opera Turandot.
08:06Oh, I would never have said that you were going to do something like that.
08:09Oh, I'd love to be able to sing this.
08:10Why have you chosen that song?
08:12My grandfather was very important to me.
08:14He's no longer with us.
08:15Aw.
08:16He was such a warm and influential person in my life and still is today.
08:23Some of my fondest memories when I was young was being in the kitchen with him on a Friday.
08:27He would have a glass of whiskey and he would listen to his wireless
08:30and he loved the three tenors and Nessun Dorma is one that he loved
08:34and I had no idea I could sing it until I was 26 I started lessons.
08:40I was in the Royal Navy, I had no idea I could sing.
08:43I was based in pretty much the middle of nowhere.
08:46It was quite boring on a weekend and I found an ad verse for singing lessons
08:50and then the teacher was like,
08:51your voice sounds quite operatic, why don't you try it?
08:54By the way, really hard to even practice this style of singing.
08:58Like so loud, you're gonna mess up a bunch and you gotta be happy that everyone's gonna hear it.
09:02My favourite place to actually practice, at the very front lower part of the ship,
09:06it's called the Folk'sel.
09:07It's basically like a metal cave, so the acoustics are like big and ringing.
09:11So I would go in there and people would walk in and they'd just be like,
09:15oh, there's Lee again, doing his scales.
09:17I really like everything about this dude.
09:20He's so humble.
09:21Buzzing about this but quite nervous.
09:25Nessun Dorma, certainly one of the most difficult things to sing.
09:29You feel at once really powerful but the most vulnerable you could ever feel as well.
09:46Nessun Dorma, Nessun Dorma.
09:56Nessun Dorma, Nessun Dorma, Nessun Dorma, Nessun Dorma.
10:20I'm blown away.
10:25Nessun Dorma, Nessun Dorma, Nessun Dorma, Nessun Dorma.
10:36He's smashing this.
10:38Oh!
10:39It's perfect.
10:40This is sick.
10:42Nessun Dorma, Nessun Dorma, Nessun Dorma, Nessun Dorma.
10:49Nessun Dorma, Nessun Dorma, Nessun Dorma, Nessun Dorma.
10:56I think about my grandad whenever I sing opera.
10:59It's a way I connect to him.
11:01So it does demand 100% emotional commitment.
11:04When you hear it done well, you can't help but get goosebumps.
11:07You can't help but tear up because you can feel what they're saying
11:09without knowing what they're saying.
11:26Do you think, for me, this is our best this season classical play for?
11:33100%.
11:33And this is...
11:34Oh, this is it.
11:40Look at the joy in the audience.
11:42They're clapping!
11:43They're clapping!
11:44That is super awesome.
11:48He's got the stoicism.
11:50Oh, I'd love to be able to do that.
11:51We have to go out.
11:52We have to go out.
11:55I would remember my grandad sipping his whisky, pretending to conduct,
11:59especially as the build-up comes for the big high B at the end.
12:02And when I sing it, I do think of that.
12:06This piece of music is so magical.
12:08When I hit that high B, he might be able to hear it
12:12even though he's not here anymore.
12:20RINA CHARA
12:21RINA CHARA
12:33Lee, you're amazing!
12:34You caught the magnet!
12:36You're so incredible!
12:38Dude, it's so lovely.
12:41Likewise.
12:42In absolute awe, you've got to teach me.
12:44Oh, hey.
12:45We'll trade it.
12:46We'll trade it.
12:48You literally, you've moved us all.
12:50Thank you so much.
12:53Go and see your fans.
12:55Go on.
12:55Go and see your people.
13:00I'm glad I was focusing just on the singing
13:03and not at all on the people in front.
13:05You were amazing!
13:09I did just get tackled by Alison Hammond.
13:12Al, we call her in the biz.
13:20The Birmingham crowd is growing fast.
13:23This is crazy.
13:25Look how many people there are, man.
13:27So we're opening up the stage.
13:28For people like yourselves to just have a sing song.
13:32Giving members of the audience their chance.
13:34We could find our finalists now, Sam.
13:37Oh, that'd be amazing.
13:38To sing the songs that mean the most to them.
13:47It's a great one to sing.
13:49You just sing your heart out.
13:50Get out all the emotions.
13:52I know it means so much to so many people.
13:58Bring in the energy.
14:00Love it.
14:00Why, Sam?
14:01I love it because she's got the most confidence on stage
14:04that anyone has had so far.
14:06It's so great asking the nicest man in the world
14:09to send anything negative at all.
14:14She's out of tune, isn't she, Sam?
14:16She's out of tune.
14:18She's out of tune.
14:23She's out of tune.
14:24I'm here for my hen-do.
14:27My head's a bit sore,
14:29but going straight to bottom as brunch after this.
14:32You can go get drunk.
14:34Yeah, you can go and enjoy your hen-do.
14:37Now go and get ratted.
14:47Growing up, I started singing in church.
14:50Hallelujah has always been that song that connected for me.
14:57Oh, look, it's falsetto.
14:58Here it goes.
14:59Here it goes.
15:01Wow!
15:12Wow!
15:16That's amazing.
15:18That's standing ovation high notes.
15:21Woo!
15:28Yeah, that was wicked jumping.
15:29Mad falsetto.
15:31Jonathan's missed his train to do this.
15:34I think you were meant to be here today.
15:36I think so too.
15:37Go get your train.
15:38Go on, get your bag.
15:38Go out of here.
15:39Go on.
15:40You wouldn't have missed your train if you thought,
15:43maybe I'll be half good, would you?
15:45Yeah, yeah, yeah.
15:46I'm just going to go and floor these people.
15:49While Jonathan runs to catch the next train to London.
15:53I'm Bob.
15:54I'm 72.
15:55I'm a retired building site manager.
15:58Our next performer's not had far to travel.
16:01I was born in Wolverhampton.
16:02So, technically, people in this area would call me a yam-yam.
16:08So, tell me what you're singing today, Bob.
16:11I'm singing Let's Face the Music and Dance.
16:14What a beautiful tune.
16:16Who are you singing it for today?
16:17My late partner, Lynn.
16:19Aw, Lynn.
16:20We met in a mixed voice choir.
16:22And we used to perform concerts.
16:25But in 2013, she was diagnosed with stage four devarium cancer.
16:30Oh, my gosh.
16:31So, we agreed that whatever came along, we'd face it together.
16:34And we spent the last nine months together,
16:36trying to live as normal a life as we could.
16:39And that's really why I picked Let's Face the Music and Dance.
16:43Have you got a picture?
16:44I have.
16:44Oh, I love that.
16:45Look at you with your coconut bra on.
16:48He's getting that out in a minute.
16:50I'm with a new lady now, Lillian.
16:52She lost her husband.
16:54How did you meet Lillian?
16:55We met on a New Year's Day walk.
16:58And we just clicked.
16:59I think it was her back and my knees.
17:03He's had that in the pocket a while, hasn't he?
17:11There may be trouble ahead
17:15But while there's moonlight and music and love and romance
17:23Let's face the music and dance
17:28Before the fiddlers have fled
17:33Before they ask us to pay the bill
17:37While we still have the chance
17:43I like the sentiment.
17:45Yeah.
17:45I feel like the band's on fire.
17:47Yeah.
17:47But I have heard Better Delivery.
17:50Yeah, yeah, yeah.
17:50I don't think this is about us analysing his vocal prowess.
17:55I just see someone who stood by someone in the darkest time of their life
18:00And they got to live out those last nine months the best they could.
18:04Let's face the music and dance, dance
18:09Let's face the music and dance
18:13Go on and dance
18:27Woo!
18:37Yes, Bob!
18:39You're done.
18:40You're done.
18:41You're done.
18:41isn't it amazing him sharing that story that could be so crushingly sad has
18:47brought so much joy we were dancing that was amazing we enjoyed that did you
18:52enjoy it though no it's the healing of music next to take the stage is someone
19:03also singing in memory of a loved one and this is mom and I know she's with
19:08you she is all of the way she loved this song she did so you're singing for her I
19:13am yeah thank you my name is Kyron I'm 39 years of age and I'm singing the song
19:20that I wrote called Good Lord she was there every single every show that I did
19:24every show on her feet the song now holds a different meaning because my mum passed
19:31away last year the last time she saw me perform she gave me a big hug and told me
19:35that's my favorite song from you and I just want you to get the whole song out
19:39there to the world and you know hopefully they can hear it I remember writing and
19:51performing my first song in my primary school assembly
20:01from then on I knew it was something I always wanted to do my mum was a singer she
20:07was in a group called royal blood she had a hit single called slipping away with my
20:12auntie I was in my mum's womb while she was touring it's an inspiration to see him
20:19performing so to me it means everything that is over stood for please welcome to
20:26this stage Kyron I'm gonna be nervous I'm gonna be you know scared I do feel a
20:36little vulnerable a little bit naked but also I know my mum will be there with me
20:41to help guide me through that
20:43thank you
20:44oh I see the light shining down on me
20:53oh I feel the wind with so much heat
21:01oh I'm drifting on by
21:05oh I don't know how I feel and I feel
21:15oh
21:16oh
21:17oh
21:17oh
21:17oh
21:18oh
21:19oh
21:19oh
21:19oh
21:21oh
21:21oh
21:22oh
21:24oh
21:25oh
21:25oh
21:28oh
21:33oh
21:33oh
21:33oh
21:33oh
21:33oh
21:33oh
21:33oh
21:40oh
21:40oh
21:40oh
21:40oh
21:40oh
21:40oh
21:41oh
21:43I performed this song at my mum's funeral.
21:45Since that moment, something clicked in me.
21:48I feel like every time I sing, I'm connecting to her spirit more.
22:04My mum was known and revered for her singing.
22:07I feel like my purpose is to now basically continue her legacy
22:12so that my children can continue mine
22:13and we can continue the founding name and legacy for forever, aren't they?
22:30He's very versatile. He's got everything in it, this song, hasn't he?
22:34Yeah, sick, I love the tune.
22:45I'm not alone.
22:48I'm not alone.
22:50I'm not alone.
22:52I'm not alone.
22:52Thank you, everyone. Thank you.
22:55Thank you so much.
23:00Go, you monk, pal.
23:04Thank you, man.
23:12I love what he's trying to say lyrically, really beautifully articulated by him.
23:22She looks like you.
23:23Yeah.
23:25Just made me sort of reflect on my own relationship with my mum.
23:30We did it now.
23:31Big guy.
23:33I'm so floored by Birmingham as well.
23:35I love it.
23:35It's really difficult not to just want everyone to go through.
23:41I love that the crowd are enjoying it so much.
23:44Adopt us, Alison.
23:46What's my daughter's name?
23:48I've got Holly.
23:49And Kiva.
23:50And Kiva, my two new daughters.
23:52I've adopted them.
23:54Get yourself home and go and do the washing up.
23:57Go on.
23:57Get yourself, go and do the washing up.
24:03Next to perform on the Birmingham stage is someone with a growing family of their own.
24:08Feel the bum there.
24:10Looking like mad this morning.
24:12You can tell I'm a little bit nervous, so...
24:15She's pregnant.
24:16Yeah, how do you think that's going to affect her?
24:17Well, at the end, you can't really breathe because all your lungs are squawked.
24:21You get more prone to getting out of breath.
24:23Yeah.
24:24Hi, everybody.
24:25My name's Hannah.
24:26I'm going to be singing Tennessee Whiskey for you today.
24:29Before my lovely son was born, I was struggling with alcohol addiction
24:33and he then became the only thing I ever needed ever again.
24:37Sometimes people think that we raise our children, but in some ways they raise us.
24:42Hmm.
24:52Ooh, she's got a lovely voice, hasn't she?
25:03When my dad passed away, I was really struggling.
25:06He was my best friend and it just was my mechanism for coping at the time.
25:11I was drinking every day.
25:13I was basically a functioning alcoholic and I couldn't see an end.
25:17But you rescued me from reaching for the bottle.
25:21Ooh.
25:21She's singing that to her song.
25:22You rescued me from reaching for the bottle.
25:24Because there's nothing like your love.
25:28Say get me high.
25:32Yeah, I hope it's sweet.
25:35None of that breathlessness exists here.
25:37Yeah.
25:37And it's Tennessee Whiskey.
25:40Oh, nice.
25:42And you're best to leave the strawberry wine.
25:50And I felt pregnant.
25:52Stopped everything there and then.
25:54When I first heard the song, it resonated so deeply with me
25:58because this is how I feel about my son.
26:00And honey, I stay strong on your love all the time.
26:11Because you're all the sweet.
26:14Most supportive mum of the season award has been won.
26:18Love the mum.
26:19Yeah.
26:19And honey, I stay strong on your love all the time.
26:30Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you.
26:34That was amazing.
26:37Enjoy that.
26:37He was transfixed.
26:40Sobriety is really difficult to achieve and it takes strength.
26:44Come here.
26:45And I feel like that reflects in her voice.
26:48That she's got strength in her voice.
26:51Take that lovely bundle of fun.
26:52I will.
26:53And have a lovely life with me someone as well.
26:56Thank you so much.
26:56So happy for you.
26:57And this is one of those cases where a song has like almost saved someone.
27:02Yeah.
27:03Cause now I'm free.
27:10The Your Song stage is in Birmingham, the birthplace of heavy metal.
27:15I'm Dani, I'm 25 and I'm from Manchester.
27:18This is Dani looking like a rock star if I ever saw one.
27:22Hello.
27:23How you doing?
27:24Lovely to meet you.
27:26Trying to guess what this could be.
27:28It could be War Pigs, Black Sabbath.
27:30I hope it's Congratulations by Cliff Richard.
27:32It totally shocks us.
27:33It's my party and I'll try if I want to.
27:37So what are you singing today?
27:39I'm singing Bible Black by Heaven and Hell.
27:41So a little bit of heavy metal.
27:43Wow, that takes me by surprise.
27:45So it's Black Sabbath instrumentally with Ronnie James Dio on vocals.
27:49Wow.
27:50He's regarded as probably like the godfather of heavy metal vocalists.
27:54Big boots to film.
27:55Yeah, yeah.
27:56Big time.
27:56And what do you do?
27:57What's your job?
27:58I'm a music teacher.
27:59Oh, amazing.
28:00So who have you been teaching?
28:01I've just started primary school teaching.
28:03Lovely.
28:03They're so cute.
28:04Oh my God.
28:07OK, we're going to start with a warm up.
28:12I always wanted to do music.
28:14I couldn't imagine doing anything else with my life.
28:19When I'm teaching, there's very much a filter over everything.
28:23I have to be professional and family friendly and polite all the time.
28:29But I'm very different on stage.
28:32A switch just flips.
28:40And suddenly I am who I need to be in that moment.
28:44I shout and scream pretty much everything.
28:46I can just let loose and be myself completely.
28:50If I get on stage and can absolutely just scream into the void for an hour,
28:55it just, it's like therapy.
28:57I feel so cleansed afterwards.
29:01I got a bit dizzy then.
29:10So I'm normally up here with my band and they're like my best friends.
29:13So I'm feeling a bit naked and bare without them.
29:15Ali is down there.
29:16He's in the band as well.
29:17So he's going to be feeling really awkward watching me and not being able to join in.
29:21You are dependent on your band around you to play in this genre.
29:27That's a test of your comfort zone for sure.
29:31At last alone, his fire's dying, burned another day.
29:43My partner, Ali, introduced me to the song.
29:45It's about reaching out for something that you think is going to be your salvation,
29:49but it actually turns out to be your doom.
29:51Before I was with Ali, I was in quite a difficult relationship
29:55and it just resonated with me so deeply.
29:57Jump for one, put it back.
30:00You're reading from the vibe of blame.
30:05The band are loving it.
30:06I love she's got them with her.
30:08She's got her back. Look at this. So cool.
30:10What's this world I see?
30:13Who are you and who are me?
30:16Maybe I'll just stumble in the nose.
30:19Yes.
30:22Let me go. I'll see it releasing
30:25but the lines let my glow.
30:31Take me back.
30:34I must have the Bible flag.
30:38Whoa. The growliness of love.
31:03Wow, that was so good.
31:06And to get on stage with a band that you've never really met, I'm buzzing for a...
31:11I was a bit worried about going on with a new band, but they made me feel so comfortable
31:16and like, they were just in it.
31:18A million dollar question, did they rock out with you?
31:20They did rock out with me, yeah.
31:24I really don't know who's going to win today.
31:26They got right up front, they were headbanging, they gathered at one edge, doing the Judas Priest thing all together,
31:32it was so cool.
31:33Breaking the law, breaking the law. Breaking the law, breaking the law.
31:38Can you see, come over here, come over here.
31:41There's Alison, how can you see her?
31:43Nice to meet you.
31:44You'll see you better in a little bit.
31:46My name is Jen, I'm from Coventry, I'm 40 years old and I'm singing Teardrop by Massive Attack.
31:51A few years ago now, when my nephew was five years old, he was diagnosed with cancer.
31:56Gideon, excited to watch.
31:59When my nephew was going through his treatment, when I sung Teardrop, it felt like a combination of anger and
32:06sadness.
32:07And I was just so fortunate that I had access to music, to other people's poetry.
32:13I could never come up with those kind of words, but people better than me have and I can just
32:18use them.
32:18I think it's one of the strongest things about music.
32:21Good luck.
32:26People really just are so enduring, so resilient.
32:31You wouldn't have a clue, would you?
32:32No.
32:36I think she's going to be very good by that little warm-up she's just done there.
32:39Checking their voices there.
32:40Please welcome to the stage, it's Jen.
32:47I was in a rock band years and years ago, it was actually where I met my husband and it
32:51was a Birmingham-based thing,
32:52so I already have this real connection with music in Birmingham.
32:55And for my nephew, he actually had most of his treatment done at the Birmingham Children's Hospital.
32:59So getting to sing this song and to my family as well, I think it's going to be incredibly special.
33:31It's really ethereal, isn't it?
33:33Gentle impulsion, shakes me, makes me lighter, fearless on my breath.
33:47Teardrop on the fire, fearless on my breath.
33:56Earlier this year, he had his last MRI.
34:00He was given, not just information, but the all clear.
34:06Fearless on my breath.
34:13Black flowers bloom.
34:14You've got to ring the bell.
34:17Come on, Indian.
34:18I'm going to give him a good ring.
34:25Now singing teardrop feels triumphant.
34:29And I can't swear, but it feels a bit like Gideon won.
34:35He won.
34:47She's amazing.
34:48She really is.
34:50She knows her voice.
34:52She knows the pocket that that vocal sits in.
34:55Yeah.
34:55Where it really reaches people the most.
34:57And that's a skill in itself as a singer.
35:07Wow.
35:08Oh, I've got goosebumps.
35:10Yeah.
35:11Oh, I've got goosebumps.
35:26Yeah.
35:27That was stunning.
35:29Are you all right?
35:30Are you getting emotional?
35:31Why are you getting emotional?
35:35It's been a long couple of years.
35:37Yeah.
35:38I could see this voice at the final because it's a really moving and intimate vocal performance.
35:48Oh, my gosh.
35:49I'm going to lose it here.
35:52That's a lot.
35:53Oh, so much.
35:58Paloma, big deal here.
36:00Yeah.
36:00This is our very last singer.
36:03Of the series.
36:04I know.
36:04Of the series.
36:05What an amazing experience.
36:07And I just feel, like, so privileged to have met all these amazing people who've shared
36:12their stories with us.
36:13It's like a career highlight for me, actually.
36:15And I'm not just saying that because Channel 4 are paying me.
36:20Okay, our next singer, singing in her mother language, Farsi.
36:25Please welcome, Mina.
36:31My name is Mina.
36:33I'm 43 years old.
36:35And I've been living in the UK for 14 years now.
36:39We want to make tachin today.
36:41Very popular Persian dish.
36:45I was born after the Islamic revolution in Iran.
36:48In Iran, women marched in support of a modern identity.
36:52The right to do any job.
36:54To dress in modern clothes.
36:56There was a lot of oppression.
36:59And women are banned from singing in public.
37:02I had to fillet the country.
37:04I had to become refugee in the UK because my voice was taken away from me.
37:10You can see that devastation in my look.
37:13That's sadness.
37:15Singing has always been therapeutic.
37:18She uses singing as a medium to just reach out with her emotions.
37:24Reflects her experience in the past and everything else.
37:28I'm going to sing a song named
37:31Chobam Yabidaram.
37:34Which means,
37:34Am I awake or am I dreaming?
37:37By Gugush, who's an Iranian singer.
37:40Gugush was in exile in her own country at the time.
37:45So she wasn't allowed to sing.
37:47Her voice was taken away from her.
37:49This is one of the first songs that I learned.
37:53This brings so many memories.
37:54I used to play this when I was 11.
37:57I listened to this song secretly.
38:00Listening to a female singer was considered haram or seen or forbidden legally.
38:07How could something this beautiful, so rich and meaningful be forbidden in any part of this world?
38:16I've never performed this for a big audience.
38:19It was always my family and friends and classmates.
38:23So this is first time.
38:25When I sing this song, I always get emotional.
38:30I feel that this is not just my voice.
38:34I feel that pressure, that weight on my shoulders, that responsibility.
38:41Singing was always, throughout my life, was more than music.
38:48It was an act of rebellion.
38:51Wow.
38:52Wow.
38:53Hope.
38:54This is for women.
38:56And to the life and freedom that music gives us.
39:04You can put those words to a melody.
39:06That's the song, isn't it?
39:07Mate, she hasn't even sung a note yet.
39:09I'm just that in bits.
39:10I'm just that in bits.
39:11Absolutely absorbed.
39:11I know.
39:14Yeah.
39:23Hopefully for some of your thoughts.
39:25I can't hear you.
39:27Like me.
39:28Oh, that's all.
39:34That's all.
39:38You can sing a little bit.
39:40And hear you.
39:40You can sing a little bit.
39:42You're really enjoying it.
39:43You're going to sing a little bit.
39:44Oh, that's all.
39:44That's all.
39:47This is insanely good.
39:50It's so beautiful, isn't it?
40:11This is incredible.
40:15There's no point in even talking about...
40:18Technique.
40:18..belitering, like, just... She's flawless, man.
40:21Stories, incredible, filth, everything.
40:29See all her hand gestures.
40:31Yeah, yeah, yeah.
40:32It's so captivating.
40:34She is using her body, her voice to channel that message.
40:37People in the audience are feeling that's how you're being told
40:40and connecting with it.
40:42Without a mutual language...
40:45Yeah.
40:46..I think we need to go out.
40:47I think we're your loved ones.
40:54I see.
40:54If you're for love,
40:56go out.
40:56I know she is so quiet.
41:02I'm sorry.
41:03I'm sorry.
41:04I know she is so quiet.
41:20Thank you so much. I'm absolutely in peace.
41:27We're really privileged to hear your words
41:29and see the way you perform, sorry.
41:33Over there.
41:35Over there.
41:37And I'm so proud to be a woman standing next to you.
41:40You make me feel so, like, it's the best thing to be in the world.
41:45I feel like I'm going to fame. It felt so surreal.
41:51When you grow up in Iran, in that very oppressive era,
41:55and then you come to freedom, to free worlds,
41:57and you can do whatever you want, you can become yourself,
42:00which is the most beautiful gift that this country has given me.
42:12I don't know about you, but Birmingham delivered today, didn't it?
42:15But I'm blown away.
42:17Mate, I love how eclectic Birmingham's musical history is,
42:21was reflected in people jumping up on that stage today.
42:24You had heavy metal.
42:25Let me go.
42:28I've been really dead.
42:29You've got opera.
42:32Opera.
42:37Mina singing in Farsi.
42:43We were all unanimously moved.
42:46Her voice was breathtaking.
42:49Her message was breathtaking.
42:50It was amazing.
42:51We felt it, didn't we?
42:53But there was one person in particular
42:55that moved me more than anyone,
42:57and that was Jenny.
42:58It was just something about her voice.
43:06Everything was just right, wasn't it?
43:08And then a special mention to Chantel.
43:11Oh, my Brummie queen.
43:14Light up, light up.
43:17Her voice.
43:18Beautiful.
43:19Everything she does seems to be kind of pretty up there level.
43:22God was just like, there you are, football.
43:24You got it.
43:24No rose singing.
43:25Give her all the cards.
43:28Right, guys, look across this way.
43:30The standard was so high.
43:32You want to put pretty much everyone that sang in Birmingham
43:35through to the final.
43:37I know.
43:37This is 100% the hardest choice of all the cities we've been to.
43:40What are you going to do?
43:41We need to choose one person.
43:42What are you going to do?
43:43Are you going to choose?
43:44This might be the night we don't sleep afterwards.
43:47So tough.
43:55So good to see you.
43:57Birmingham, what can I say?
43:59You did the city proud.
44:01Birmingham, thank you so much for having the courage to share your stories.
44:05As you know, you haven't just been performing for the wonderful crowds of Birmingham.
44:09You've also been performing for two superstars, Paloma Faith and Sam Ryder.
44:22You all did so amazingly.
44:24Birmingham has been a standout city.
44:28Every one of you could be in the final.
44:30The standard was so high.
44:33First of all, it's just been amazing to bear witness to.
44:37Such an amazing group of souls.
44:39And we feel all incredibly lucky that we get to share this moment with you.
44:44Only one of you though can perform at the final.
44:48That person is going to be...
44:56...Mina.
44:59Come forward.
45:01Come to the next, darling.
45:02Come here, darling.
45:03Come on.
45:04You're amazing.
45:05I didn't expect that at all.
45:07We'll have a big room for you.
45:09Oh, my God.
45:10We love you, Mina.
45:12Mina had what we were looking for.
45:15The moment she stood on that stage and opened her vocal chords,
45:18which were exceptional, and delivered that song to us,
45:22it was beyond singing.
45:23It was beyond the story.
45:24It was about protest and women's rights to have their voice.
45:29And she certainly had her voice today.
45:31What you brought to that stage was more than just your voice,
45:34but it was everything else.
45:36Oh, thank you so much.
45:36You should be really proud.
45:38I root for Mina.
45:40I feel every word she says,
45:42even though I don't understand a single one of them.
45:44How amazing is that?
45:51Singing today.
45:52Probably the biggest moment of my life,
45:54where I'm given this platform to share my message
45:57about women empowerment,
46:00the power of music,
46:02the magic that can happen when human beings connect.
46:05I didn't expect that.
46:06That's all right, baby.
46:07I didn't expect that.
46:08I didn't expect that.
46:09Oh.
46:14Yes, Birmingham!
46:17Chantel.
46:19Next time...
46:20No, you're joking.
46:21...Mina is joined by the other finalists.
46:23Finlay.
46:28Getting down to business in the studio.
46:30At the end of that song,
46:31I want to hear you tear that knot apart.
46:35Guided by Sam and Paloma.
46:37I haven't actually seen her get through a song yet without crying.
46:41And joined by a last minute addition.
46:44Okay, I'm about to phone the wild card.
46:47Oh, wow.
46:48In preparation for the performance...
46:50It's going.
46:51My voice is going.
46:52...of a lifetime.
46:53She absolutely needs to be quiet or she's not going to have any voice tomorrow.
46:56I'm not good at this.
46:57Bye bye!
Comments