A TEENAGE singing sensation from the North-East has arrived in Los Angeles to take part in the live quarter finals of a US talent show which has already made her a global star.

Courtney Hadwin, 14, from Peterlee, County Durham, arrived in California on Tuesday morning and is now preparing for the next round of America’s Got Talent.

The shy youngster with a powerful soul voice become famous the world over when she earned her place with a ‘Golden Buzzer’ during her audition on the hit show.

Last week, Courtney, appearing on the television show Lorraine, on ITV, said: “I have been practising everyday and have been going for runs to help with my energy levels.

“My voice is natural. I turn into a different person.”

Courtney, who is a pupil at The Academy at Shotton Hall, reached the final of The Voice Kids UK last year, but it was her version of Otis Redding’s Hard to Handle which has become a viral hit.

America’s Got Talent judge Howie Mandel reached for the Golden Buzzer while fellow judge Simon Cowell told her: “Bloody hell Courtney.

“You were this shy little thing when you came out. Then you sing and you’re like a lion. I mean, genuinely incredible.”

She said she chose to apply for America’s Got Talent because it where her idols were from.

She said: “It is the biggest show in the world.

“But Simon is Simon so I was really nervous singing in front of him.”

Her spellbinding performance has earned Courtney her own celebrity fans and she has received tweets of support from stars including singer songwriter Paloma Faith, who said she ‘loved her’

Courtney told Lorraine’s stand-in host Christine Lampard her heroes were Janis Joplin, James Brown, Mick Jagger, Aretha Franklin, Etta James and Tina Turner.

Her dad, Paul, who joined her on the show, said: “It is not from me.

“She just sits on You Tube and one leads to another.

“It is just amazing, the support she has had afterwards.

“We knew it was going to be big over there, but we did not expect it to hit over here in the way it has.

“She has loads of support from friends and family. It has been amazing.”