In a fascinating turn of events, a 13-year-old Austrian girl managed to claim ownership of the ballad “I Will Always Love You,” which was famously denied to Elvis Presley by Dolly Parton four decades ago.
In 1992, Whitney Houston brought the “forbidden” song to a new generation, and it was recently flawlessly performed by Laura Kamhuber on The Voice Kids during the blind auditions.
She left the judges momentarily at a loss for words.
Continue reading to discover the audition of the young girl that has garnered a staggering 226 million views on YouTube!
Back in 1974, Elvis Presley took a shot at covering Dolly Parton’s popular song “I Will Always Love You,” which she had just released that year.
When Parton agreed to the terms, it meant she would have to give up half of the publishing royalties to the country song she wrote upon ending her professional relationship with long-time partner Porter Wagoner.
And though Presley was her hero, she couldn’t bring herself to sign.
“Something in my heart says, ‘Don’t do that.’ “And I simply didn’t do it,” she stated during an interview with CMT. However, I’ve always been curious about how it would sound. I’m confident he would excel at it…He would have absolutely crushed it. But anyway, so he didn’t. Then when Whitney [Houston’s version] came out, I made enough money to buy Graceland.”
Whitney Houston recorded a pop ballad of the same song for the film The Bodyguard in 1992, where she starred alongside Kevin Costner. This song achieved incredible worldwide success, selling over 20 million copies and earning the title of the best-selling single by a female soloist in history.
In 2012, when the pop diva passed away, the “Jolene” singer expressed her sorrow along with other celebrities. She released a statement expressing her gratitude and admiration for the incredible performance the late singer gave on her song. From the depths of her heart, she declared, “Whitney, I will always love you. You will be missed.’
In the following year, Laura Kamhuber, a 13-year-old, took to the stage for a blind audition on The Voice Kids. Her performance of “I Will Always Love You” was flawless, leaving the judges completely stunned.
In the German edition of the popular singing competition, the talented young Austrian impressed all three judges with his performance. They were so impressed that all three of them turned their chairs, eager to coach the middle schooler.
After her spine-tingling performance, German pop star Tim Bendzko told Kamhuber that she had just sang “the forbidden song.” Referring to Houston’s range of vocals that are hard to match, he joked: “you’re not actually allowed to sing this song because it’s unsingable.”
Bendzko exclaims, “You sang it absolutely brilliantly!” It was absolutely amazing.
Even though Kamhuber, who is now 24, was eventually eliminated in the show’s knockout battles, her audition remains iconic with 226 million views, making it the most watched YouTube video by an Austrian artist.