POESY WINS
Singing under the name Poesy, Ancaster singer wins hearts with ‘Soldier of Love’
Sarah Botelho was getting frustrated with the music business until she got a chance to prove herself on the new CTV talent search series “The Launch.”
The Ancaster-raised singer, who performs under the name Poesy, rose to the occasion and beat out four other up-and-comers, winning the right to “launch” a new song.
Now her “Soldier of Love,” written and produced by proven hitmaker Stephan Moccio, is on sale across the country, backed by a media push by CTV and blessed by Fergie of the Black Eyed Peas and record industry executive Scott Borchetta.
The pretaped episode was to air Wednesday night and moments after she was named the winner, the song was to be made available on iTunes, Spotify and to radio stations across Canada.
“I felt for a long time that I wasn’t good enough to do this and I should get another job, do something else,” a teary Botelho said on the show after being chosen. “Now I don’t feel like I have to do that anymore.”
Botelho, a 23-year-old graduate of Bishop Tonnos Secondary School, has been writing songs since she was nine and studied classical piano up to the age of 15. She studied English at Western University in London, Ont., and recently moved to an apartment in Toronto where she hopes to continue her musical career.
Botelho won over the judges — Fergie, Borchetta and Moccio — with a breathtaking rendition of Radiohead’s alt-rock classic “Creep.”
“She feels like she comes from another time,” said Moccio, composer of the Miley Cyrus hit “Wrecking Ball.” “There’s something haunting and beautiful about you.”
Added Fergie: “Poesy can perform better than a lot of the artists who are in the Top 10 today.”
Her biggest competition came from Ezra Jordan, the 23-year-old son of Toronto singer-songwriters Marc Jordan and Amy Sky.
Both Botelho and Jordan were selected from the five to record “Soldier of Love,” but in the end Botelho’s alt-rock version of the ballad won out over Jordan’s stripped-down approach. It was recorded in 48 hours.
“The first time I heard the song, I knew it was something that was right up my alley, something that I could make my own and have a lot of fun with,” Botelho told The Spectator.
Botelho said Moccio was by her side during much of the recording process.
“What I like about Stephan is that he writes these huge anthems and it’s very humbling to me that I got to sing one of them,” said Botelho, who filmed the episode in August and has had to keep the outcome secret ever since.