A former Miss England winner who was bullied for being 'too beautiful' has had the last laugh after becoming a pro singer touring with Ronan Keating, Russell Watson and Aled Jones. Natasha Hemmings, 26, has swapped the catwalk for the stages of some of the UK's biggest concert halls and arenas since becoming a successful full-time musician.
She was crowned Miss England in 2015, aged 19, which gave her the confidence to pursue a career as a singer-songwriter before she got her big break in 2018. Natasha was snapped up as a support act for The Overtones, which led to talent scouts for Russell Watson and Aled Jones getting in touch.
She then toured concert arenas across the country supporting the classical singers in 2019 before being booked to gig with pop megastar Ronan Keating. Natasha has just finished a 15-night tour with the Irish singer, which culminated in her performing in front of 3,500 people at London's Hammersmith Apollo last night (Tuesday).
Her success comes just a few years after she was targeted by jealous students during her time studying English at Nottingham University. She was picked on for her good looks and became a prisoner in her own halls of residence after being taunted by cruel bullies who even threw food at her door.
Undeterred, she entered the Miss England beauty pageant in a bid to build her self-belief and was left stunned when she was crowned the winner seven years ago. She went on to represent the nation in the Miss World contest in China in front of a billion viewers before graduating from the Royal Northern College of Music with a Bachelor of Music degree.
Natasha now continues to silence the bullies, using her music to inspire other women and her latest EP already has 200,000 streams and downloads in just two weeks.
Natasha, of Nantwich, Cheshire, said: "It has been some journey so far and in this business you just don't know where it is going to take you next. Music has always been a passion of mine, I was classically trained from the age of nine but your voice is not mature enough come 18 so I decided to go to uni.
"But it wasn't what I expected and ended up becoming quite isolated. I experienced bullying and many online trolls commenting on my looks or my education. One time I had food thrown all over my door. So I used to get takeaways and eat in my room, I just became locked away in this box room for some time.
"People assumed I 'studied soft subjects like drama' and one went on to say I 'couldn't spell or add up without fingers and toes'. It is amazing how many people want to tear down an individual who is trying to work for something and empower women to chase their dreams.
"It was actually my mum who entered me for the Miss Cheshire heat of Miss England and it proved transformational for me. I'm no model or beauty queen really, but I was drawn by the emphasis they placed on the talent division and their attitudes to charity work.
"It gave me the confidence to by myself and be on stage and they obviously became transferable skills in terms of putting my music out there. I learned how to talk and act on stage and I went away and began writing my first album."
Natasha set up her own record label and began recording her first album Whispers. She is now currently working on her second album I Am, which will be out later this year.
She added: "It's a joy to be doing what I love. Touring with Aled, Russell and Ronan has been a dream come true. Aled is just the loveliest person and Russell was amazing too. Ronan I was very much a bit star-struck by but he is so down-to-earth and friendly.
"They all really went out of their way to make me feel incredibly welcome on their tours and it's a far cry from being sat in my uni halls by myself. But my music is very much inspired by those earlier experiences. Each song has been written from a personal memory or event or moment in my life.
"It is all about things and experiences that I've gone through. It was a very cathartic process to write I wanted to raise awareness with my music that in today's world everyone is creating a perfect version of themselves out on social media.
"It feels like no one can truly be happy when pretending to be someone else, scared they won’t be liked and accepted for who they are. Many young girls are exposed to the unachievable beauty standards and trolled for trying to attain them.
"Social media can be a place that causes mental health issues and isolation for many young people. My latest song Invisible promotes the happiness of loving yourself and celebrating being the real you.
"On my tour with Ronan I've also been promoting a song called The Enemy, it’s about powerful men abusing power and taking advantage of people. The song was written from inspiration of things I have witnessed in both the music and modelling industry.
"I do also perform a Kate Bush cover, which is obviously very popular now she is back in the charts. I have been getting a great crowd reaction.
"I'm vocally in the same territory and Kate Bush is someone that really inspired me. I've performed all over at Birmingham's Symphony Hall, to the York Barbican and the Cardiff Motorpoint Arena. The Hammersmith Apollo was very much a bucket list venue.
"My first album was quite classical but my latest work is crossing over a bit more into pop. I'm not signed to a record label so its all self-promotional. We'll see where that takes me, but I'm just enjoying the ride for now."
Natasha's music can be found at https://listen.natashahemmingsmusic.com/Invisible
To enter Miss England 2022 visit www.missengland.info
