Margie Maccoll
Cora Ledwith is riding the airwaves of success after the 16-year-old singer songwriter began, just last year, making a name for herself on the local stage.
In 2022 Cora was a finalist in the Noosa Alive inaugural Stars Alive program and at the Noosa Busking Championships gained first prize for best original song and second place overall.
This month, on 24 February, the teenager will be releasing her first single, Romeo and Juliet, a milestone that feels a long time coming for the rising star.
“I’ve been playing across the coast and Noosa for about two years and writing my own music and I’m finally releasing a new song,“ Cora said.
“It’s been a long journey to get here and I’ve been saving my gig money to get this song recorded.
“I have pretty much been singing since I could speak, my parents tell me, and have grown up listening and loving all types of music with my family. I have always felt it’s somewhere in my destiny to sing.“
Cora plays acoustic and electric guitar and performs a variety of music, including pop, rock, R&B and musical theatre, drawing inspiration from listening to the music of artists such as Taylor Swift, Beyonce, Pink and Lady Gaga.
In her first release, Romeo and Juliet, Cora performs all her own harmonies and vocal work.
“It’s gone from an acoustic ballad to quite an upbeat pop song,“ she said.
“The song is about wanting a perfect relationship dreaming about what you could have with someone but knowing it will never be like that and the reality of a person messing you around making a joke out of you, but I just want that perfect love story, like Romeo and Juliet.
“I’m excited to get it out there.“
Cora has begun Year 12 at school and is expecting a busy year with a future in music.
“I want music to be my career, I believe it’s my destiny and I would love to share my original music with people, while continuing to be inspired by others and my favourite artists,“ she said.
“I live and breathe singing and performing and love nothing more than when I am playing gigs at the weekends and letting everyone hear my music.
“I play all across the Sunshine Coast and Noosa pretty much every weekend. When I’m not performing, I spend most of my free time writing original music, playing guitar and recording renditions of songs. My aim is to keep writing, recording and releasing as many songs as possible this year.“
You can catch Cora on local radio stations SeaFM and MixFM in interviews lined up on the day of her single release on 24 February and appearances on Hot91 and ZincFM around the same time and listen out for her new release, Romeo and Juliet.
