A West End star has landed a major record deal after a track she recorded in her bedroom as she recovered from Covid-19 went viral.
Marisha Wallace, 34, who has starred in Dreamgirls and Waitress on the West End and Aladdin and Book of Mormon on Broadway, recorded Tomorrow on her sofa during lockdown.
Having battled Covid-19 for weeks, she decided to order home equipment to record a version of the song, made famous by the musical Annie, to lift her spirits.
Speaking about catching the virus, she said: “I was on tour and I remember walking out on to stage and Boris announcing all the theatres had to close. I got sick days later. It was such a hard time, being ill and not knowing when I would be able to perform again. So when I felt better I got myself a recording device and recorded Tomorrow as it’s such an uplifting song.”
The singer, who supported Todrick Hall on tour before lockdown, later released it online in a bid to raise money for Broadway Cares and the Make a Difference Trust.
Both charities are helping struggling performers during the pandemic.
The song went viral, eventually reaching number 2 in the UK download charts, with Michael Ball playing it regularly on his BBC radio show.
After the song, the YouTube video of which has been watched over 30,000 times online, was released, the cast of RuPaul’s UK Drag Race did a version of the track.
Decca Records, who represent Katherine Jenkins, Gregory Porter and Ronan Keating, were then in touch, offering her a record deal.
Wallace, who was born in North Carolina but now lives in Greenwich, said she had already written her debut album and was excited to “get back on tour as soon as I can.”
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She said: “The album is about hope. It is about embracing your emotions and your feelings and processing them, which is what we have all been having to do during the pandemic. I hope people will be uplifted by it.”
