2009: A singer who found fame in an X-Factor-style TV talent show was almost driven to suicide by the emptiness of a celebrity lifestyle, a Norwich audience was recently told.

 

Liam Moore, who idolised the performer Phil Collins, later became a star in his own right after appearing on the TV talent show, Stars in their Eyes, a forerunner to the X-Factor.

 

Liam's dream came true when he was asked to perform in London before his idol, Phil Collins, who later endorsed him as his 'number one tribute act'.

 

But as Liam found fame on international music tours, he discovered that money could not fill his inner emptiness. 

 

"Achievement and money didn't satisfy. Relationships broke down, and cocaine and alcohol didn't fill the emptiness inside me. Although I'd found fame, I also sank into the depths of depression," he said.

 

In desperation, he phoned a Christian friend, who led him to faith in Jesus Christ. This brought lasting changing for Liam, as today, 11 years later, his recent national music project involves choirs of 6,500 children in Merseyside who have helped him launch a new CD called You're the Voice.

 

This inspiring CD brings 'a message of hope and encourages Christians to boldly counter ungodly trends, injustice, peer pressures and gang culture among the young.'

 

This venture is a big turnaround for Liam, who had a rough early life, growing up in areas of Merseyside that have been   associated with gun crime.

 

He was expelled from school at 14, later working on market stalls in Liverpool, but dreaming of success as a singer. Today, he says: "Many people are looking for a voice, but in the wrong places. They don't yet know the love of God and his amazing grace."