When TikTok sensation Kevin Freshwater approached Charlotte Awbery with a microphone on the London Underground, he changed her life forever.
Clutching a takeaway coffee, Charlotte, then 32, was on her way to meet a friend when she was stopped by the social media star who asked her to “Finish The Lyrics!” – a game he plays with random strangers where he starts a song and asks them to finish it.
Little did Kevin – or Charlotte for that matter – know that when her beautiful rendition of Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper’s Shallow from A Star Is Born went live, it would take the internet by storm.
And before she knew it, Charlotte was on her way to LA to perform on The Ellen DeGeneres Show.
“I landed and I was walking through the airport and people were like, ‘Oh my God, that’s that girl,’” she tells us as we catch up following our glamorous shoot.
“People were asking for autographs and it was mind-blowing. I texted my parents to say I’d landed safely and my mum said, ‘Dad’s just nearly dropped his coffee because you’re on Good Morning Britain!’
"I’ll be honest, I didn’t even know what going viral meant as I wasn’t on Twitter and didn’t have TikTok!”
As well as performing on Ellen, Charlotte was interviewed by the host and presented with a cheque for an incredible £10,000.
“I couldn’t believe it and I was so grateful,” says Charlotte, who lives in Essex with her French bulldog Jago.
“I’ve mainly put that into working on my own material and hiring a recording studio.
“The whole experience of being on Ellen was surreal. I had my name on a dressing room, I even had my own driver, it was just so special.
"I mean, I was panicking the whole time and when I went on stage my heart was going so fast you wouldn’t have wanted to be in my chest, but it really was amazing.”
Referencing the end of the 19-series talk show in May this year, Charlotte continues, “I was sad to see it go. She was really nice to me and I had a really positive experience.”
Charlotte’s rise to fame has been an incredible one.
Once a singer who performed at weddings, bars and pubs for 15 years and faced the rejection of every UK talent show where she hoped her voice would be heard, her Instagram following has now grown from 1,500 to 531,000 and she counts Kelly Brook and Rochelle Humes among her followers.
“I did The X Factor, Britain’s Got Talent, The Voice, I did them all,” she says. “I did Pop Idol first and I didn’t even get past the producers.
"But every year I would audition for one of the shows and queue up for hours. It just didn’t work for me and I didn’t believe anything was going to happen.”
Two years on from being discovered, thanks to a man with a mic in a Tube station, Charlotte, now 34, is gearing up to release her debut album, Pride.
And we can reveal she has also put forward a song for Eurovision in the hope of following in runner-up Sam Ryder’s footsteps next year.
“I’d be so proud to perform on home soil,” says Charlotte of the competition, which will be held in Liverpool in May, 2023.
“It would be a dream come true as I’ve watched Eurovision since I was a little girl.”
As for why she thinks her track Stronger would be perfect to represent the United Kingdom, she adds, “It’s got a kick to it and a Flashdance vibe, but with a ballad feel at the same time.
"You could imagine dancing or working out in the gym to it. It’s a very positive, energetic sound, which is what’s needed right now.”
Chatting to Charlotte, it’s hard not to be won over by her bubbly personality, but even she has been subject to cruel trolling since entering the spotlight.
“As much as it’s been great, it’s also come with some negatives,” she says.
“I can be a bit sensitive and they would attack my image and how I look, which wasn’t nice.
"When people don’t know you and they’re coming at you like that it’s hard. You could be the toughest person in the world and someone could sit there and say it doesn’t affect you, but it does.”
The star continues, “In the end I didn’t want to read it as it plays on your mind. So now I just don’t read anything, but it has got a lot better.
"You have to have a thick skin in this industry and I have supportive friends and family and a team around me.”
This support from those closest to her has been crucial for keeping Charlotte level after being thrust into the limelight so suddenly.
“It’s amazing what happened, but I did find it hard,” she says. “When you’re put out into the big wide world with something going viral, and
it’s out of your hands, there are pros and cons.
“I was a bit like a deer caught in headlights. I was like, ‘Is this happening to me?’ I was a bit scared.
"I’m not ungrateful as it was so amazing to be put there and I’ve always wanted to be a singer. But when something is a dream and then your dream becomes a reality, it’s like, ‘What?’ It’s scary.”
“I went mute and I didn’t know what to do,” she continues. “I almost lost myself.
"I’ve always known what I wanted to say, but everyone in the media world talks so well, so I was like, ‘I’m just Charlotte from Essex, what do I say?’ Looking back, I think I was in shock.”
Now the world has discovered Charlotte’s voice, she couldn’t be more excited for what’s to come.
“I can’t wait to release my album next year and get my own material out there,” she tells us.
“My dream would be to perform with a live orchestra and perform on the stage and sell out arenas. In my eyes, the only way is up from here.”
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