If there is one song sure to cut deep into the heart of the listener, Leonard Cohen‘s “Hallelujah” sits at the top of the list. A 14-year-old boy with unearthly talent delivered a chill-inducing rendition of the classic song on The Voice Kids UK in June 2017.
Auditioning for a shot to compete on the singing competition, young Riccardo Atherton stole the hearts of all three judges with his moving rendition of Cohen’s iconic song. Riccardo earned three unanimous chair turns from judges Will.i.am, Pixie Lott, and McFly’s Danny Jones – who admits to being left in “goosebumps” by his voice.
“It made me fall in love with it and I have been performing ever since,” said Riccardo according to Rossendale Free Press. “I have never done anything that big before, it was on a completely other level so I was extremely nervous but in a way that’s a good thing because that’s what gave me the emotion in the song.”
The young singer, who initially fell in love with music performing in his primary school choir, says he didn’t “expect any of the judges to turn around.” But with a voice like that, how could they not?!
You can watch his chill-inducing performance below.