Music teacher hopes to inspire on Quebec's version of The Voice
Ottawa music teacher Ferline Regis's performance on Sunday has guaranteed her a place in the francophone reality talent show La Voix.
Regis sang I Know Where I've Been from the musical Hairspray.
"I was just singing my heart out and I could hear the crowd going crazy," she told CBC Radio's Ottawa Morning.
"When I opened my eyes, I saw the judges stand up … I had to calm down and just enjoy the moment. I was so happy, so grateful, so blessed. It was a great moment for me."
The song spoke to her immigrant experience after she left everyone and everything she knew behind in Haiti to come to Canada in the late 1990s, she said.
"My dad was the one who started with me, the singing," she said.
"The funny part is he would never clap … I could see the approval in his eyes, I would know, 'OK he is happy,' but he'd never clap."
Her success Sunday was bittersweet because her father wasn't there to see it.
"My dad passed away in 2002 and I couldn't go back for the funeral," she said.
"It was very important for me to have him be proud to see me, and that's why this was very emotional for me at La Voix because it would have been so great for me to see him. My joy wasn't complete because he wasn't there."
Regis hopes her appearance will make a difference for others.
"My mission is to inspire and to let people know they can go after what they want."
