This Homeless Opera Singer In The LA Subway Lost Her Home To Medical Bills
If you've ever taken the subway, you know that the train ride is just a small part of the whole experience. It's the people that can turn your ordinary commute into a unique experience - you just never know who you'll run into. Maybe you'll run into a group of dancers, maybe a guy in a funny costume or maybe a homeless opera singer down on her luck - which is exactly what recently happened in the Los Angeles subway.
Someone recently filmed 52-year-old opera singer Emily Zamourka singing in the LA subway and the video quickly went viral
An LA police officer spotted a homeless opera singer performing on the subway and uploaded a video of it to the LAPD Twitter account with the caption "4 million people call LA home. 4 million stories. 4 million voices...sometimes you just have to stop and listen to one, to hear something beautiful."4 million people call LA home. 4 million stories. 4 million voices...sometimes you just have to stop and listen to one, to hear something beautiful. pic.twitter.com/VzlmA0c6jX
— LAPD HQ (@LAPDHQ) September 27, 2019
The video quickly went viral, gaining over a million views in just a few days. Naturally, people became curious about who the mysterious opera singer was and why was she performing in the subway of all places.
Turned out the singer is 52-year-old Russian songstress Emily Zamourka. She learned to sing by watching opera performances on TV as a child and later went on to master the violin and piano.
Emily used to play the violin on the streets but, sadly, her violin had been stolen
Image credits: Turtz Ruzcom
At some point in her life, Emily moved to North America where she worked in nursing homes and restaurants before becoming a music teacher. Sadly, due to health problems, she amassed a hefty medical bill which led to her ending up in Los Angeles.
Image credits: CBS
Emily used to play the violin on the streets and it was her only means of income at that point. Sadly, someone stole and destroyed the $10,000 violin so she started singing instead.
People were really moved by Emily's story and they decided to help her get back on her feet by creating a GoFundMe campaign
Image credits: CBS
Emily became somewhat of a local celebrity after the video went viral and someone even asked her to sing at the opening of Little Italy in celebration of Italian heritage in Los Angeles. People even created a GoFundMe campaign to help the singer.
People loved Emily's singing
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