Over the coming, weeks a specially chosen group of 10 local high school students will be honing their voices and perfecting dance steps for the 11th annual Rich City Idol competition. But the polished performances May 29 on stage at the Gateway Theatre are only part of the story of growth for the finalists.
While it represents the finished article - the result of a lengthy journey - the student-run and organized event is much more than just a singing contest. It's an opportunity for local youth to showcase not only their talent, but their leadership skills and contributions to the community, said Justin Uyeno, lead producer of last year's show.
"I believe the lessons the idols and organizers learn from this experience are immensely important in their development as artists, professionals and young leaders," Uyeno said. "Much like any team, the show requires considerable cooperation, responsibility, and commitment from all volunteers in order to ensure the show is successful. And like many live shows, there are always unexpected occurrences that do not always go according to plan."
And that provides a perfect opportunity for the competitors to step out of their comfort zones and learn to persevere through the challenges associated with performing, Uyeno added. Meeting those challenges is exactly why Natasha Jung and Martin Hui - students at Richmond secondary school - founded the event in 2004.
It's also a period of startling transformation for the competitors who have already
been judged to represent their school at the final, said Lorie Leung, a Grade 12 student at McMath who, for the past two years, has hosted the show, and is now producing this year's performance.
"When the competitors first come to us they are all very shy," Leung said. "They're quiet and pretty nervous about everyone else there because they know these other kids are their competition. And initially, when we ask them to sing, posture-wise they're slouched over, not very loud, and not projecting.
"But by the end, after they've had some vocal coaching, their breathing gets better, their voices become louder. And they are more energetic and willing to work well with the crowd," Leung said.
"So, by the time we are ready to do rehearsals they are dancing, pointing into the crowd and trying to get us to clap along with them. You can really see their confidence level certainly go up."
And that can potentially lead to greater things in the future as RCI has accumulated a long list of alumni, some of whom have gone on to successful endeavours in the music business. Among them is Jeff Laing who has gone on to become a performer, music producer and also made it to the top 100 in the Canadian Idol TV competition.
Another is Elaine Shepherd, a Juno Award winning performer who returned for last year's 10th anniversary RCI show as a judge.
"Being a guest judge for the 10th Annual Rich City idol was a real pleasure," Shepherd said. "It was surreal for me to be sitting there years after the first Rich City Idol that I had won 10 years prior. It was truly amazing to see the talent.
"Some of them, I would say, were definitely much better than I was at that age, so it was a real treat to be able to watch the perform. I am grateful to the RCI crew for inviting me to be on the panel. It was a wonderful experience." Leung said for the competitors to see someone like Shepherd, and the success she's had so far, is a key in stoking their ambition.
"Having the alumni come back shows that if you're really passionate about this and want to continue to do this you can go far," Leung said. "You can be in Hollywood singing. You can have music videos made for you. And seeing those who have succeeded make me feel the work I've put in can also help produce successful people, as well.
"But the best thing that makes me happy is that the competitors become a family. And at the end of the day Rich City is just that - a family." Taking part in this year's Rich City Idol are:. Kavya Balajepalli (H.J Cambie secondary). Maria Encarnacion (McNair secondary). Kamaira LeBlanc (Boyd secondary). Carol-Lynne Gee (McRoberts secondary). Jiana Gonzales (Richmond secondary). Suan Rincon (Palmer secondary). Carlos Vidanes (Steveston-London secondary). Kennedy Williams (MacNeill secondary). Jessica Wong (Burnett secondary). Chris Yan (McMath secondary) Tickets to Rich City Idol 2014 are $12 in advance and $15 at the door.
