The Voice UK's Billy and Louie Hughes tackled school bullying by singing
Billy and Louie Hughes were subject to verbal attacks at school, but the freedom in singing helped them overcome it.
'The Voice UK’ stars Billy and Louie Hughes overcame school bullies thanks to their passion for singing.
The 21-year-old Swindon siblings – who were the first twins to reach the final of the ITV talent show and finished as runners-up – were subject to verbal attacks, but their connection to music “in amongst slightly chaotic times” helped them tackle it.
Billy exclusively told BANG Showbiz: “I look back on school, and people said things and did things that totally weren’t acceptable.”
The ITV show was not the first brush with showbiz for the boys as they appeared on BBC’s ‘Little Mix: The Search’ aged 16.
Reflecting on that experience, Billy said: "Doing something like ‘Little Mix: The Search’ was eye-opening but also, we had so many people in our school be like, ‘Oh my god, these guys go to my school. It’s so cool.' And I’m like, 'You literally hate me!’
“We didn’t really have any friends in our year at all because we were so interested in singing and art and drama, and doing all the things we loved, and nobody liked that in our year for some reason.
“There was nobody that we could connect to that enjoyed the same things as we did.
“We actually enjoyed studying and getting on with life, but people didn’t seem to be like that.”
Despite the teenage challenges, the ‘No Good for Each Other’ performers – who were coached by the "chilled out" and "really humble" Sir Tom Jones on 'The Voice' – insist they also have “great memories” of their school days with their pals and “because we had each other, we were strong enough to pull through”.
Some viewers were unhappy that Tom, 84, gave Billy and Louie a shot at victory rather than Bicester's Hollie Peabody, 22, and Oxford's Ace, 20, in what proved to be a controversial decision.
The winner of the 2024 series of 'The Voice' was Bristol’s Ava, 21, who took the top prize - £50,000, a record deal with EMI and a trip to Universal Orlando Resort, in Florida – after being coached by McFly band members Tom Fletcher, 39, and Danny Jones, 38.
Louie says he and Billy “don’t really care” if people think Tom made the wrong choice because they focus on the heaps of “lovely messages and comments” from their devoted fans, as well as “having the seal of approval from Sir Tom”.
After they smashed the blind auditions with their spectacular rendition of Whitney Houston’s ‘Run to You’, and sailing through to the final as members of Tom’s team, the “all-round amazing experience” has led to “lots of people” interested in snapping them up for opportunities.
They released their debut EP ‘Manifesting’, which was inspired by ‘90s RnB, last year and are now gearing up to perform at their sell-out Swindon Wyvern Theatre show with their six-piece band on February 6, 2025.
Louie said: “Thank you to everyone who supports us.
"It’s honestly amazing to know how well received we are and to know we’ve definitely got a space in this industry that won’t be going too soon.”
Billy added: "I’m always so grateful to Sir Tom, so thank you to him."
Head to Billy and Louie's website for more information on their upcoming show and follow the boys on Instagram, whilst their EP is available on all major streaming services.
