THIS time Karise Eden is doing things her way.
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Eden was thrust into the national spotlight after winning the first season The Voice in 2012.
The young singer with a voice likened to Janis Joplin, was gold.
She had four songs in the Australian top five – only the Beatles, in 1964, have bettered that.
She was hot property, but she was also young, fragile.
The whirlwind took a toll. Eden walked away from her national tour after just four shows, later revealing she had a physical and mental breakdown.
“Everything went so big and fast, I just had to stop in the middle of the national tour,” Eden says.
“Things got very tense and full on, I needed to step back, and then start from scratch again.”
Eden’s path to national stardom was a rocky one.
She left home at 13 after a difficult relationship with her mother and spent her teenage years living in several women's refuges before eventually being taken in by foster parents.
Her struggles and her talent was the inspiration of a song released recently by her The Voice mentor Seal.
“It’s not just Karise, for a lot of artists on that show — and artists in general — the biggest obstacle we face is ourselves and our uncanny knack of standing in our own way,” Seal was quoted as saying last month.
She’s heard the song.
“I’m very honoured and privileged the man is still thinking about me, they’re really beautiful lyrics,” she says.
“He knows me very well and met me in a very vulnerable time of my life, so he really, really knows me well.”
The time out of the spotlight allowed Eden to write and record a new album, Things I've Done, which was release 14 months ago.
During summer Eden will tour acoustically around Australia, including a stop at Albury’s SS&A Club on Sunday, January 10.
“I’m ready for it, I love it,” Eden says with enthusiasm.
“My favourite part is when I’m standing on stage and singing.
“I love the opportunity to be performing again and getting out there.”
The acoustic format appeals to Eden, she says it reminds her of cruisy afternoons on her property with summer food and family, which has taken on new importance in the past 12 months.
December 24 marks her son Blayden’s first birthday.
“It’s been going all right, I’ve been blessed with the most placid baby, he’s slept for 12 hours since he was born,” she says.
“I don’t know how long it’ll last, I might think different when he starts walking.”
