- “I Made it Through”…hopefully
In case you missed it, it was the Gospel shot heard around the YouTube world! Aspiring young gospel singers and dancers did simultaneous double-takes as one of the industry’s most energetic and creative artists sent them ALL a personal invitation to audition for his next project. Tye Tribbett himself sent out the call, (while giving listeners a brief preview of a new song), and before you could say: “Everybody JUMP”, bright hopefuls worshiped, did back-flips, and apparently some borrowed cameras in order to not miss this opportunity!
GWL is very much excited to see something like this happen mainly because we love the idea of the church (God’s people) embracing technology and using it in creative ways. It’s also a classy move when any artist makes room to inspire and give opportunities to the Next Generation, so kudos to Tye and his team for that!
*Disclaimer: Gospelworshipleader.com is in no way “officially” responsible for the contestant’s selection, (or lack thereof), in this contest. That’s completely up to Tye and his team. We simply recognize the awesome significance of this event and want to keep as much coverage on it as possible. All views expressed are the author’s and are meant to provide POSITIVE and CONSTRUCTIVE feedback only!
Now….let’s get to the latest round! We may not be able to cover everyone, but here are some of the most notable recent entries:
Round 2 roundup:
Lomeika “Lo”, 26 from NJ
GWL THOUGHTS: +Say what?? Lo immediately show’s us the “next level” in auditions is HERE. Vocal ability aside, I have a feeling that if I was living in an IGLOO this young lady’s personality would be strong enough to have me consider buying a refrigerator! She comes across as naturally personable and not just putting on her “YouTube best” for the moment. Her attitude translates seamlessly into her singing as she maintains this aura from start to finish. With some contestants having what seems like 23 minute “introductions” her natural flow is a breath of fresh air! Improvement suggestion - Lo didnt dance, (although she told us she could). Her chops were well enough that this reviewer didn’t really NEED to see any flips, but I cant help but wonder how many folk may be judged lower by Tye simply because they didn’t demonstrate everything. Also, she changed key in the song. I know good and well that Mary Mary’s rendition of that song has many key changes…but I’ve not positive they were in the same spots…..(readers can help verify in the comments section).
Chris Graham, 20 from NC
GWL THOUGHTS: +With a 2:58 long introduction, you gotta have something REALLY SPECIAL in order to keep folks interest. Fortunately, Chris delivers, no joke. Chris has his “gospel swagger” on point…and it doesn’t seem to be an act, but a natural vibe. His vocals and his dancing are quite solid. No runs that venture into KeKe Sheard territory, but definitely not safe and lazy. In case you missed it in the 2:58 long intro, he’s apparently seen Tye and his group enough to know what they expect and apparently he’s up for the challenge. He reminds me most of former G.A. member Lionel…holding in down in the pocket. Improvement Suggestion – Um, gee..I dunno….maybe the (ALMOST) THREE MINUTE INTRO?? Lol!! Nossir. It was good and showed his humor and appreciation, and dedication, etc. It just almost caused me not to finish because of everyone else I had to review. Chris was definitely strong enough to make it all worth it…lets just pray that Tye agrees!
Jermaine “Jermano”, 28 from
GWL THOUGHTS: +Someone said on the comments his voice was “soulful”, and I’d tend to agree! He didn’t take too many risks but what he did , he did quite solidly. Surely he was in a nice controlled mellow worship mode. And is it just me, or did his cousin look a just a teeny bit like Tye’s wife, Ms. Shante?? Could be a sign… Improvement suggestion - O.k…..I said he didnt take many risks, but actually…he kind of did. Not “bad” at all, but the song was smooth…I’m talking mellow smooth. I’m talking, make’s me wanna relax or deeply worship smooth. So he must’ve been in a deep worship mode, right? Let’s follow along starting at 3:02…”stronger than mountains” YES!! “Deeper than Oceans…” Heading to the throne room now!!! “Reachessssss to me-Your phone is distracting me!!!” Um, what was that now??? Tye will probably get it, though. (It’s just the “probably” part in that sentence which represents the “risk” I was referring to)!!
Donovan, 20 from WI
GWL THOUGHTS: +Nice! Those with a trained ear will notice one thing…TONE. (And I’m not talking about him being “light-skinned-ed”). My brother has a SOLID tone. True, there wasn’t any crazy movements on his end, but it was enough to make me go from laying back tapping my foot to leaning forward and nodding my head. He didn’t spend too much time talking about his convictions…but he didn’t need to. I just felt something genuine. Any other witnesses to that? Improvement suggestions - Tye plainly said he didn’t want anyone “cocky”, and this brother is certainly far from that, perhaps a few centimeters too far. Experience has taught many all to well that there’s a fine line between “cockiness” and “knowing how awesome you REALLY are in God”. I guarantee you my brother, even if this Tye audition is not yet your season your God-given gift will take you FAR if you let him continue to use you! Stay confident in HIM! And for the rest of us, I suggest you look away from your screens during 1:07 – 1:11. Just trust me on that…(now on to our next pick..lol).
Jaysen, 20 from NY
GWL THOUGHTS: + Let’s see. “Obama is black”. “Pentecostals usually know how to shout”. And finally “its my passion to worship GOD, through everything i do”. The last quote comes directly off of Jaysen’s YouTube page, but ALL three statements are UNBELIEVABLY OBVIOUS!!!! By the end of the second song I didn’t know whether to praise, worship, or break into a shout! (I’ll probably do one of them each time I listen). The vid is unusually dark, but the message within is full of the Light. Nice job! Improvement Suggestion - Let there me (more) light. This time the natural time. Also, with a quality vid like this it would have been nice for him to said something about himself, (besides what is written in the comments). But hey…touch folk like that long enough and they’ll FIND you!
Blacklucy from ???
GWL THOUGHTS: + O.K…. this is a wonderful rendition of a song by Lena Horne. From The Wiz. And…. it has music! (One of the first contestants to do so, surprisingly). And…..it’s from The Whiz. Improvement suggestions - It has…music!!! A lot of it! Loud, drowning music! As a musician, I can appreciate the fact that sometimes music alone can usher you into the presence of The Wiz… the…um, yeah. Not that is wasn’t very beautifully done….it’s just a puzzling song choice for a Tye Tribbett audition. Tye did say he always wanted to be in a Broadway play, so maybe she’s on to something….
Julius, From TN
GWL THOUGHTS: + I can only think of one main thing that’s good about this particular audition. The fact that TYE is probably picking more than just one male vocalist/dancer leaves some hope for someone else. (This guy MUST get in). I could elaborate, but honestly if you don’t agree from just watching this video, than you probably don’t agree with anything I’ve ever typed. Improvement suggestions - What do you want me to say? “He dropped his sunglasses sometime between his 5th and 7th backflip”? Really???
Misty, 22 from CT
GWL THOUGHTS: + Just when I thought the men were positioned to dominate this competition…listen to Misty long enough and your eyes will get just that…(misty)! At first I thought it was a “safe” choice, but close your eyes and you can EASILY picture this young lady standing next to the likes of Angie and Demaris. TONE, TONE, TONE…is on POINT! And most impressively the well chosen riffs that she chooses to go over the song’s simple chord progression brings a freshness and life that does NOT suffer from pitch problems…at all! Suggestion Improvements- Presentation? hmm…she was straight chilling in the bed for her Tye Tribbett audition of a lifetime! I’ve heard of “laid back” but that was ultra-literal! Granted, she did explain it was 11:30pm. (She did not explain why 11:30 pm was the only time she had to record her video), but it really doesn’t matter she nailed the vocals. My only concern is that if Tye ends up getting a close call between two vocalists then presentation may play a part. Time will tell…
GWL FINAL TIPS: DO YOU REALLY WANT TO “STAND OUT”?
- I believe I can fly….
- Things are really starting to pick up, with a little over a month remaining you may want to consider even the little things that will set you and your video apart
- Watch others and learn from what they do right, (and more importantly, what they do wrong).
- KEEP YOUR focus. Bashing fellow contestants on YouTube is NOT going to make you anymore attractive to ANYONE…continue to encourage your brothers and sisters!
Any more pointers? Tips that I’ve missed? Do you agree or disagree with our constructive critiques?? Please let us know by leaving a comment below.
Although this is Tye’s decision alone to make, we’d love for you to take the poll and see if we can predict this correctly! If for some reason we’ve missed your audition, feel free to shoot us a message to Youtube.com/gospelworshipleader.
THINGS ARE HEATING UP…STAY TUNED FOR ROUND 3 COVERAGE RIGHT HERE IN THE COMING DAYS!
- Ready to tell the nations: How Great, is Our God!
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