21/09/2026
HI to all newbies - I rarely post in here because the FB algorithms get me one view per month LOL, please come over and visit me at Julia Williamson
However it would be remiss of me to not share this here.
Over 20 years ago, I stepped into a room with a dear friend, Michelle Nunan, and we nervously ran our very first singing circle together. Not long after, I launched VoiceJam — running singing circles in Brunswick Heads and eventually from my home in Ocean Shores, where I was blessed with a large timber space with great acoustics. I'd already set up the garage with cool Mayan-style furnishings and plastered the kids' Steiner artwork all over the walls — it became my private studio for singing lessons and Past Age Clearing and Healing sessions.
Maddy was 9 when I launched VoiceJam and sang in all the kids' groups. At 12, the teenagers gave the go-ahead for Maddy to join their group — and they remain my favourite (if challenging) classes ever. Such incredible voices and synergy between the teens, such different people in their own way, but when they came together to sing they bonded. A special shout out to , who had the most crystal-clear soprano — this became a training ground for Maddy, watching how Vanessa reached those high notes, since soprano was never my strong point.
At 15, Maddy began teaching kids' classes in singing and beginner ukulele, which morphed into adult classes, and she started helping me with arrangements, harmony parts and vocals in the recording studio on the Sing to Thrive acappella music — for people who wanted to learn how to sing while rewiring their brain with positive lyrics.
NOW, 15 years later, my daughter runs her own singing school in the Northern Rivers, and I've never seen a calendar so full. She held a concert this weekend to give her students a chance to sing on stage and experience microphone technique and everything else that comes with performing in front of a room full of people. They just kept arriving, and "impressed" is an understatement for how I felt about the quality of singing. The teen group was next-level amazing — this group only started this year and had barely sung before, and the harmonies were sooooo good. Her adult choir was also extremely impressive. There were lots of proud mumma moments.
Maddy has worked hard at her craft, and teaching has been good discipline for those of us who don't love practising... LOL.
I took this footage myself, so sorry it's not professionally recorded — but if you take the time to listen, I know you'll be transported, just like I was.
To all the students and choir singers — you are amazing, KEEP SINGING. And to everyone who took part in this beautiful community event — THANK YOU.
