Elaine does Ireland proud in World Karaoke Championships
By Brittany King
A KARAOKE champ from Woodstown Village proudly represented Ireland at the World Karaoke Championships (KWC) in Helsinki, Finland, on November 20.
Elaine Cudden performed “These Boots Are Made For Walking” by Nancy Sinatra, “Diamonds are Forever” by Shirley Bassey, and “Welcome to the Jungle” by Guns’ N Roses, which saw her make the final top 10 of the competition.
Elaine’s journey into the karaoke scene began late August when she and her girlfriends headed down to their local pub, Mortons in Firhouse, where a karaoke competition was being held.
This eventually lead to Elaine being chosen to perform on RTÉ’s Late Late Show, which was searching for a singer to represent Irish to the World Karaoke competition.
Karaoke is something fun Elaine loves doing.
She told The Echo: “You really get to enjoy yourself and it allows you to let your hair down. That’s what karaoke is all about.”
Elaine competed against 20 competitors from other countries, including USA, Japan, Canada, France, India, and others.
She built really close bonds with the other contestants.
“We all got on really well together. We just bonded, and by the time it was over and we would be going home, we all cried”, she said.
The world champion winner was Chylee Howell from the USA.
Elaine would like to thank the Irish representative for WKC, Doug Murray and his wife Judy, everybody in Mortons, choreographer and line-dance instructor, Maggie Cadwell, Tara and Saoirse Barry, wardrobe and makeup, and all her friends and neighbours for their support.
