You might remember last week how Bec Sandridge covered John Farnham’s ‘You’re The Voice’ for triple j’s Like A Version, and you may also be aware of the unacceptable, and personal comments that her performance received on social media. Well, while we already knew the comments from the haters were just not on, Farnham himself has now come out in Sandridge’s defence, saying that he was a fan of the cover.

As The Music reports, Farnham’s manager, Glenn Wheatley, spoke to them about the ‘deplorable’ comments that Sandridge received following her performance last Friday.

“John loved what she did,” Wheatley said. “We’ve had several different versions done by various people over the years. This was quite unique. He loved it… When someone tries to do their own interpretation of it, and it was as good as she did, he applauded it. It was a lovely sentiment… an incredible interpretation of the song.”

Wheatley went on to say that the “disgraceful” comments shared online about the performance were way off base, and despite being from the minority they were obviously still hurtful to Sandridge. Disgusting comments such as “you can put as much lipstick as you like on a pig, but it’s still a pig…” and “someone should stab her in the throat” were posted in the comments sections for Sandridge’s performance last week.

As Sandridge said to The Music on Thursday, “Luckily, someone like me, I’ve got a relatively thick skin and I don’t feel affected by it, but it’s kinda scary that artists are creating and putting themselves out there and choosing to make bold decisions and people are cutting it down.”

Wheatley also shared a message for the immature folk sharing these mean comments; “Don’t be cowards. It’s very easy to sit behind [a computer] and be anonymous and think that you’re being smart and hurtful and be able to get away with it. I think that it’s a deplorable act. And we’ve seen too many celebrities buckle under that sort of pressure. We’ve seen celebrities take their lives because of it, it can get too much.”

If you or someone you know is experiencing depression or anxiety, please call Lifeline on 131 114 or beyondblue on 1300 224 636 for help or information.

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