Has ‘The Voice UK’ star Leah McFall written the Irish entry?

In the early hours of this morning, rumours began to suggest that the Irish song for Eurovision 2017 had been chosen. We already knew that Brendan Murray would be Ireland’s representative after he was internally selected last month. Since his selection, RTÉ opened a submissions period for composers and songwriters to submit songs for Brendan to sing in Kyiv. This submissions period closed on 16th January. Therefore, it makes perfect sense for a song to have been chosen right about now!

So who has composed Brendan’s entry?

While there is still no official confirmation from Brendan or RTÉ, the rumour mill has been in overdrive today. It suggests that former finalist on The Voice UK, Leah McFall, is the selected songwriter. Leah is 27-years-old from Newtownabbey in Northern Ireland. Her defeat in the final of The Voice UK back in 2013 is considered to be one of the biggest reality TV surprises of recent times. Days before the final, Coral bookmakers famously said Leah “only has to turn up to win” with her dominant odds of 1/4 (or 1.25 via the decimal format). Nevertheless, she lost out to another Northern Irish singer, Andrea Begley.

However, Leah’s The Voice UK mentor will.i.am was determined to help her carve out a successful career. Following an acclaimed duet with Leah during the final, will.i.am’s latest single Bang Bang hit the top 3 in the UK charts. As a result, will.i.am and Leah re-recorded the song. This was then released via the most popular music compilation series in the UK, Now! That’s What I Call Music. The following year, will.i.am featured on Leah’s official debut single Home. Unfortunately, despite critical acclaim from pop fans the song only charted at #56 in the UK charts. Consequently, Leah’s planned album Weird To Wonderful was cancelled and never released.

Continuing on as an independent artist

Leah hasn’t let that setback stop her though. Last September, Leah independently released a brand new single titled Wolf Den. The modern beats showcased Leah’s extraordinary vocals and the song received coverage on several British websites. This is a taste of the talent Leah can offer Ireland and Brendan.

Brendan is expected to release his Eurovision entry next month. This will most likely coincide with a performance on RTÉ’s The Late Late Show. Only time will tell if Leah has written his song, but the rumour mill is certainly suggesting so!
What do you make of the rumours? Do you think Leah would write Brendan a Eurovision-winning song? Let us know your thoughts on the rumours via the comments section below or via our Facebook and Twitter pages @escXtra!