'I lost my voice as a child but now I'm a singer'

A woman who needed singing therapy after losing her voice as a child has had her music played on the radio.

Ruby Poole, 18, from Harwich in Essex, was five when she woke up to discover she had lost her voice overnight.

She was diagnosed with nodules on her vocal cords, causing her voice to sound raspy and husky.

It was suggested she start singing as a form of therapy but in the ensuing years she did not stop and said she was "very excited" to have her track All My Tears played on BBC Introducing.

After starting therapy, Ms Poole would sing around her house.

She recalled: "My mum first realised I could sing when they had friends over, I walked into the kitchen singing an Avril Lavigne song, they were all blown away."

"This is when my mum started to really encourage and nurture me with my singing."

She continued her lessons and eventually joined a choir, Harwich Sing, by the time she was nine.

By continuing to sing, her teacher told her the nodules on her vocal cords had likely softened, allowing her to reach higher notes than before.

When she was 15 she started posting singing videos online, which led to venues messaging her to book her for performances.

She said: "I started doing this regularly from the age of 16, singing in pubs, events and a few weddings... sometimes on my own or with a guitarist."

"My parents would drive me to gigs and help set up my equipment. They have believed in me and supported me, financially and physically when at times I have doubted myself.

"I am forever grateful for their support."

Speaking on BBC Essex after uploading her music to BBC Introducing, Ruby said she was influenced by other female artists who sounded similar to her.

She explained: "I loved Avril Lavigne, I don't know what my obsession was with her."

Adele, Amy Winehouse and Etta James were some of the other artists she listened to from a young age.

She is studying for a creative artists degree at ACM Music College & Academy in London.

Reacting to her song being played on the radio, the teenager said it was "very exciting".

The single was written following the death of a family member and explores the emotions and feelings of that grief.

Ruby said: "It's about the feeling of losing someone very important to you that you love, and I think a lot of people can relate to that."