High-School Rugby Player’s “Ain’t No Sunshine” Blows the Judges Away

We all have dreams in high school of making an impression and doing something important. When Shaun Smith appeared on the Britain’s Got Talent stage in the show’s first season, he said his ambition was “to make other people happy,” certainly a laudable goal.

Judge Simon Cowell was not necessarily convinced: “Nothing to do with the money, Shaun?” To his credit, Shaun does come clean: “I could do with a new car,” he admits. But the whole interaction was good-natured and Shaun doesn’t come off as anything other than innocent.

He then launches into a cover of “Ain’t No Sunshine,” a soulful and timeless song that has left an indelible mark on the music industry. Released in 1971, it was written and performed by the acclaimed American singer-songwriter Bill Withers.

And the judges are clearly more than a little impressed. When he first starts, there are smiles all around. When he finishes, Simon tells him, “I genuinely wasn’t expecting that…You’ve got a very authentic sounding voice and you didn’t make that sound karaoke…I think you’re really good.” Watch the full video below to see why the judges were impressed and please leave us a Facebook comment to let us know what you thought!

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