Karise Eden, Soul Singer, Wins The Voice Australia 2012

19 years old Karise Eden won the very first series of The Voice Australia on the 18th June 2012. She won from three other finalists of The Voice - Darren Percival, Rachel Leahcar and Sarah De Bono. Karise was coached by Seal and they developed a special relationship which shone through when they performed a duet, Many Rivers to Cross, on the final night of The Voice.

When Karise sang her blind audition song, the four judges/coaches all turned around and fought over who would coach her. Seal won the day and set about helping Karise to become vulnerable in her singing and express the pain of her troubled and disturbing past. This strategy worked as the soulful singer gained increasing confidence and deep emotional expression. Her song from the finals night shot to number two on the Aria charts and she had four number one hits on iTUnes. Many people have compared Karise to Janis Joplin, one of her musical influences.

When Karise Eden won The Voice Australia, Twitter went into meltdown and many tweets judged her a very worthy winner amongst three outstanding other singers.

Auditions were conducted blind for The Voice Australia 2012. The four judges - Seal, Joel Madden, Delta Goodrem and Keith Urban - faced away from the singers when they performed. If they liked a singer, they had to press their buzzer which automatically swung their seat around to face the performer. Once they had done this, they were then eligible to be nominated as coach by the singer.

When Karise started singing, the four judges could not press their buzzers quick enough - they knew she had an unusual, stunning voice and that she could win the first series of The Voice Australia 2012.

Karise Eden - from State Ward to Winner of The Voice Australia

Karise sings through her pain and her tough past life. As a Ward of the State, she lived in refuges for many years, 20 refuges in all. Moving from one refuge to another she must have drawn on incredible fortitude to survive against the numbing feeling of being unloved.

Her first lifeline came in the form of loving foster parents who owned a music store and shared their love of music with Karise. They introduced her to the guitar and encouraged her singing Her foster parents provided Karise with the opportunity to perform with them at festivals and other music venues. She has gone on to win the first series of The Voice Australia 2012.

Her other lifeline has been her coach, Seal, on The Voice. They developed a very close relationship, born of shared painful experiences. When Karise arrived at The Voice auditions, she has an unassumig, quiet teenager who was very shy and bashful. Seal set about helping her to get in touch with her pain and express it through her music. He stresed the need to sing from the heart and let people see who you are and hear what you have experienced. On winning The Voice, Karise said to Seal, "You showed me a new life". Seal has named Karise Australia's new "Queen of Soul".

Many commentators on Twitter and iTunes have compared Karise Eden to Janis Joplin. She was certainly influenced by the music of Janis Joplin and others such as Axl Rose, Bon Jovi, Ian Gillian and Amy Winehouse. However, in the final analysis, Karise Eden is her own person, telling her own story with her hear-felt soul music.

Karise has never had any singing training. On entering The Voice Australia competition, she said that if she did not make it as a singer, she would find work that involved helping women who have suffered from domestic violence.

Top 3 Places in Australian Aria Singles Chart

Karise Eden has accomplished something only the Beatles before her achieved. She took the top three places on the Australian Aria Singles Chart with her songs, Stay With Me, Hallelujah and I Was Your Girl.

Within days of winning The Voice, Karise was been working on her debut album, My Journey, which will be released on Tuesday 26 June 2012. This album is expected to also top the Aria Album Chart.

Karise Eden had tough competition on The Voice

Karise Eden was one of four in the final round of The Voice Australia 2012. In the last live competition show, each finalist singer had to perform two songs - a cover song of their coach's choice and one of their own creations.

Karise Eden, Winner of The Voice, sang the Ruby Turner version of the classic heartbreak elegy, "Stay With Me Baby" and her own composition, "I Was Your Girl".

Second placed Darren Percival sang Stevie Wonder's classic, "For Once in My Life" and his own composition, "Damage Down", accompanying himself on the piano.

Third placed Rachel Leahcar sang a favorite of Nat King Cole, "Smile" and her own composition, "Shootng Star" a tribute to her coach and her inspiration, Delta Goodrem.

Fourth placed Sarah De Bono sang Tina Arena's powerful ballard, "if I Didn't Love You" and her own composition, "Beautiful" which expressed her triumph over the debilitating effects of schoolyard bullying.

A stunning yourng talent

Rachel Leahcar performed on The Voice Australia and displayed a beautiful voice with a very wide range. Her performances drew standing ovations and she ended up winning $20,000 as the third placed contestant in The Voice.

Rachel turned 18 the day after she performed her absorbing first audition. She was coached throughout the show by Delta Goodrem, who had been her lifetime idol.

Rachel wrote a song, "Shining Star", in honor of Delta and performed it on the finals night.. She will be traveling and performing with Delta during Delta's Australian tour this year.

Rachel is legally blind and had to be assisted on and off the stage for each of her performances.

Rachel Leahcar had all four judges spell-bound by her rendition of La Vie En Rose. They fought over who would be her coach. The audience and judges gave her a standing ovation and many were in tears with this performance.