Esmée Denters Discusses Being Dropped and Auditioning for 'The Voice'

[Main Pop Girl]

The Voice UK contestant Esmée Denters has admitted that she was "angry and confused" after being dropped from her record label.

Denters was previously signed by Justin Timberlake's label and had a top ten hit in the UK before being dropped in 2012.

"I think at the moment when I got dropped I was sort of angry for a long time and very confused," she told Digital Spy.

"People don't really know what it's like unless you go through it, and when I went through it was the darker side of the music industry. A lot of the time you just see the glamorous things and you just see what's popular. You don't see how much work goes into these things."

She continued: "I was very lucky – I was handed stuff on a silver platter when I first started out, and the reality is a lot of people have to play in every little pub and they have to work their ass off. I think the people that just keep going no matter what – I think those are the people eventually that win.

Denters admitted that she found it tough because she wasn't told what was happening with her record deal but just felt "like the label didn't want to make another album".

"I just felt like I was kind of being kept in the dark," she said. "Nobody really said anything to me – I was just left to deal with myself. And then when I found out I moved back in with my mom – I think the hardest part was that in Holland people might recognize me more than in any other place because it was a big deal in the media when I got signed.

She continued: "I think being on The Voice now, I've grown up and I've experienced these things and I'm ready to talk about them and discuss them. I'm not angry about them anymore.

"Things happen for a reason – I was also very young and naïve and didn't really know who I was as an artist, so I think it might have been for the better because I have been living a normal life. I moved to London, made loads of new friends, I've been working, writing a lot of music and just kind of having a social life again which is nice and keeps you grounded. I think that was important as well."

Denters explained that her fanbase were a "massive part" of why she auditioned for The Voice, saying: "There were a lot of people online who were supporting me who were saying, 'We really want to hear new music from you, why don't you try going on The Voice or X Factor or something like that?'

"I thought about it and then this summer I saw that they were doing new auditions and I was just like, 'Why not just take a risk, put myself out there again and hopefully I can find a way to let people know what's been going on with me for the past few years?' I think a lot of times when artists get dropped from their label, people don't understand – they think the artist just quit making music, and that's definitely not the case. I just want them to know that I'm very much still determined and I want to make it happen. But independently it's just been a lot harder so hopefully going on to the show will help."

Denters added that The Voice appealed to her because it's "genuinely about the voice", saying: "Maybe being someone that people might have heard of before or they might recognize my face, I thought it would just be a good way for me to be like, 'You know what, it's an even playing field'.

Denters admitted that she was nervous because she was the last person to perform on her day of auditions - even though she had been ready since 7am - and described it as a "massive relief" that all of the coaches turned for her.

She eventually chose to join will.i.am's team after he remembered a conversation they had in 2008 and said: "I met him a long time ago at a YouTube event and we had a really good conversation and he gave me advice and I was just sort of hoping that he would remember that conversation and maybe he would even recognize my voice.

"So when he did in the end push his button and then also remember me, that was a big moment where I was like, 'Okay'. It was kind of a test for me to see who I was going to pick. The other coaches gave it a good fight so they did make me kind of think, but I'm happy in the end with who I chose.

Denters added that she found the upcoming battles stage "daunting", joking: "I'm a lover not a fighter, so I don't know how I'll feel about that! I think also putting two artists up against each other always seems a bit unfair because I feel like a lot of times people have their own strengths and a lot of the time it just ends in people trying to out-sing each other. It's kind of weird watching that happen so I hope that mine will be okay!"

I don't really care for her, but it's nice to see another flop getting a second chance at stardom. She's really fallen far from where she was tho...I wonder if she still keeps in touch with Justin Timberlake?

[Cypher]

To be honest, I'm glad she isn't part of her old label. Her label really screwed her in terms of the album. She had some killer songs that should have done better with the right promo.

[Main Pop Girl]

To be honest, I'm glad she isn't part of her old label. Her label really screwed her in terms of the album. She had some killer songs that should have done better with the right promo.

It's true, but at the same time I feel she has very little stage presence and isn't really the greatest performer out there...I feel the label just wanted to look hip by jumping on the YouTube bandwagon but didn't actually understand how great she'd be.

[Cypher]

It's true, but at the same time I feel she has very little stage presence and isn't really the greatest performer out there...I feel the label just wanted to look hip by jumping on the YouTube bandwagon but didn't actually understand how great she'd be.

That could be true. I only know her from her album/singles, so I'm not too sure how she is outside of that.

[CloneX2]

Wow seems like she really is Samantha Jade vol.2 lol

[Cypher]

Thinking back to this, I think Esmée came up in the wrong era. She was battling against the dance-pop sound with her throwback pop / R&B sound. I think if she had released in the era of streaming, she could've carved out a niche for herself.