Siblings sing way to hearts
X Factor viewers were overcome with emotion last night when brother and sister duo Sina and Soni Paulo stepped up to audition for the reality talent quest.
The half-Tongan and half-Niuean siblings, who are based in Adelaide and come from a family of nine, had the judges and audience in tears as they performed an emotive rendition of Cyndi Lauper's True Colours.
But it was Soni's backstory that made the audition so overwhelmingly poignant.
The 22-year-old revealed he had been struck with Kimura disease at the age of 11, a rare condition which has caused his face to swell constantly.
Since being diagnosed, he has had four operations just to reduce it but they can't stop it and there is no real cure.
To make the situation even worse, he revealed that he had been the target of bullies who mocked his appearance, leaving him to retreat to the solace of the family home.
"When I wake up it is there. I can't do anything about it. It is really hard to look in the mirror," Soni said.
"Sometimes it is hard. It is hard to get looked at every day. I get mocked and teased. It gets to a point where you don't want to leave the house."
Luckily he found comfort in music, and has teamed up with his 17-year-old sister.
"I had a guitar and I learnt how to play and I used it as a way to express myself," he said.
"I put my feelings into a song. Singing has given me something to look forward to. It is good doing it for my sister. I probably wouldn't even be here if it wasn't for her."
Sina held back tears on last night's episode when she opened up about how hard it had been for her brother.
"He has gone through a really tough time. Please hear his talent and just not look at him because of his looks. I hope our talent blesses you all," she said before the pair had the audience and judges on their feet because of their sensational performance, which saw them move to the next round of the Seven series.
"Soni, I have so much admiration for you for coming here and doing this," judge *Ronan Keating *said.
"You had me hanging off every single word. It was beautiful. You should be incredibly proud. You had this whole place on its feet at the end of that song."
"Your sound is the definition of beauty," Redfoo added.
"That was from the soul. That was the stuff humans have that we can't see. And you just let us see everything inside you and that was just beautiful."
