Funked Up Reach National Final

A Walsall College band made up of Music students have made it through to the final of the World Skills UK Popular Music Competition, confirming their place as one of the region’s new rising stars.

Members of the band, ‘Funked Up’, impressed the industry professional judges at the recent regional heats at Derby College and have now been selected to perform at the national final of the competition to be held at Walsall College on Thursday 26th May.

During the competition, which is run in association with UK Skills, each band had to select and rehearse two songs of their choice and were assessed on a range of factors, including communication, difficulty, dynamics, musicality, presentation / showmanship, professionalism and technical accuracy.

The eleven bands competing in the final are the highest scorers from across the country, making the competition particularly fierce.

The members of ‘Funked Up’ are Mica Barton, Rosanna Lefevre, Tom Southall, Calum Harrison, Charlie Stackhouse and Liam Bridgen, who offer their own unique blend of funky rock harmony.

Vocalist Mica commented: “We are so pleased to have made it through to the final against some very tough competition. Taking part in the World Skills competition has been a great experience and has definitely given me more confidence for when I go on to study at the Vocal Institute in London. We’re practising really hard at the moment and would love to win!”

Music Lecturer Ray Johnson added: “We are delighted a group of our students have made it through to the final of the national World Skills competition. The standard of entries has been extremely high and success on this level proves they have a huge amount of skill and talent. We wish them all the very best for the final.”