A former The Voice UK winner from Co. Tyrone tells Mary O’Donnell about her faith
Since winning The Voice UK in 2013, Co. Tyrone singer, Andrea Begley has performed at an international concert in Beijing, in the Royal Albert Hall in London, and various venues around Ireland, including Belfast’s Waterfront Hall, but, while she thoroughly enjoyed these occasions, she told The Irish Catholic that her favourite place to sing was “in the chapel”.
Singing from when she was a little child, the 27-year-old is currently on a career break, from her job as a policy officer with the Department of Health, to focus more on her music.
Happy with the response to her first album, The Message, the Pomeroy native has been writing songs for a new album and trying them out on a mini tour around some venues in the North.
“I am getting a great response from the audiences to my own material,” said Andrea, who likes to sing a mixture of music.
Describing her style as having “a folk/jazz feel”, she added that as well as doing some Irish traditional and contemporary music, she does quite a lot of religious singing.
Recalling her experience singing on Songs of Praise in the Royal Albert Hall, Andrea said: “It was amazing performing with a full orchestra and choir.”
Popular
“It was a programme of the top 10 hymns, as voted by the public, and I sung Be Still for the Presence of the Lord, which was voted fourth most popular.”
She added that she would like to try her hand at hymn writing and is contemplating doing an album of religious music.
The oldest of three girls born to Ann and Kieran Begley, Andrea comes from a strong faith background and said that while she was “definitely not holier than thou”, she liked to practice her faith.
“I love going to Mass and am comfortable either singing as a soloist or with my local parish choir in the Church of the Assumption, in Pomeroy.
“The chapel is my most favourite place to sing in, with the lovely, quiet and peaceful atmosphere. I feel more connected with spiritual singing than saying prayers; it just comes easier to me through music,” said Andrea.
Saying that she does turn to prayer to a certain degree in her life, she recalled praying for the strength to get through The Voice UK show, which she described as being “one of the biggest challenges” so far in her life.
“I was thankful how everything was going. I didn’t go into the show thinking I would do amazingly well, but I wanted to go out every week and do the best I could, so it was a shock for me to get to the final, never mind to win!”
Born with perfect sight, Andrea was three-and-a-half years old when she developed a condition called juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, which started in her ankle before becoming eye-related as well.
Developing cataracts and glaucoma, she experienced loss of vision from the age of five years and has had about 24 operations to reduce pressure on her eyes over the years.
Registered blind since 1996, when she was nine years old, Andrea recalled travelling with her family to Knock Shrine, Lough Derg and Lourdes in the hope of a miracle, but she said that as time went on “it became apparent that that was not going to happen”.
Recalling how she went through school and university, got a job with the civil service and developed her music as a hobby, Andrea remarked: “While I didn’t get my vision back in a miracle, I got the strength to go on and was blessed in other ways with talents that I pursued with a lot of determination.”
Achieving three As at A-level in religion, history and politics, in which she came third overall, Andrea went on to study Law and Politics at Queen’s University, and graduated in 2008.
At the end of last year, she graduated from her Masters in Law and Governance, which she studied for part-time through work, over a two-year period.
She remarked: “It is a case now that I have got used to my eye condition. I set myself goals and keep busy. It is just part and parcel of my life, so I don’t think about it too much, though it is frustrating and a hindrance that I can’t drive and am dependent on other people.
“But, there is not much I can do about that. When you are on this Earth for such a short time, you just have to get on with it.”