A SINGER from Abergele is to compete in the UK Karaoke Championships final this weekend.

James Lawson (stage name “James Lovett”), 24, will take part in the competition on Saturday (August 10) at Bournemouth Pavilion.

He graduated from the  Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, and has made the final after successfully getting through two earlier rounds.

In those rounds, James recorded himself singing versions of Tom Jones’ I’ll Never Fall in Love Again, and Frank Sinatra’s My Way.

There are 10 finalists competing in Bournemouth on Saturday, and they will be required to sing two solo songs of their choice, and also have a third song ready to perform.

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The winner will go on an all-expenses-paid trip to Finland from October 7-14 to compete at the Karaoke World Championships.

Since graduating in July 2023, James has worked full-time as part of the Warner Theatre Company in Bodelwyddan Castle, performing in team shows and solo performances as a singer and dancer.

He have since left that position to try to make a name for himself in the music industry, doing everything from busking on the streets of Chester to promoting himself on social media.

James is now part of a wedding band called Truly Medley Deeply as a singer and drummer, alongside creating a musical theatre duet cabaret with his girlfriend.

“Music has been a huge part of my life since I was seven years old when I began learning classical piano,” he said.

“At 15 years old, I joined a Welsh choir called Only Boys Aloud (OBA), which sparked my passion to perform.

“OBA gave me many opportunities including performances with some notable people such as Alfie Boe and Wynne Evans, performing across Wales and England.

“I was also a member of John’s Boys Male Voice Choir prior to their involvement in Britain’s Got Talent.

“This karaoke competition is the first of many chances that I plan to have in order to showcase my talents on a national and international scale, as I start to build my hopefully very successful career as a musician.”