Talented young musicians and singers from Greenbelt and beyond entertained the Greenbelt Labor Day Festival crowd late Saturday afternoon with performances in a variety of musical styles and genres—everything from pop to punk, from grunge to soul, with a little heavy metal thrown in.
The scheduled acts included accomplished performances by Cushioned Fall Band, singer Kristen Beauchamp, Plaid Zebra Band, and the Baltimore-based Five Mile Stretch band. A special revelation was the impromptu a capella performance by Shervonne Brown, who wowed the audience with her original take on a Beyonce song—“Listen”—from "Dreamgirls."
Brown’s selected number about finding one’s own voice and living one’s own dream could be symbolic of the entire event, which—according to event organizers Rick Ransom and Doug Tull—was all about giving young musicians a chance to perform in front of a live audience and to develop their performance skills.
Find out what's happening in Greenbeltwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
“Sometimes the kids just need a push,” Rick Ransom explained. They need someone to tell them, “you can do this.”
Ransom and Tull, both musicians themselves, described how they placed an ad in the paper earlier this summer, inviting musicians to audition at the Greenbelt Community Center. They explained that they specifically targeted more youthful musicians who were just starting out.
Find out what's happening in Greenbeltwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
The performance venues for new musicians are drying up these days, Ransom added, recalling that one of his first musical gigs was playing at the Greenbelt Youth Center for a dance. Afterward the band mates celebrated at a local eatery with the $25—a lot of money in those days—that they had just earned.
At the auditions, Ransom and Tull listened to several acts and gave advice and critiques to the performers. About six acts auditioned, and all were accepted, although two were later unable to commit to the performance date. Both organizers praised the professionalism and dedication of the young musicians.
Ransom said that putting together the talent show event was a lot of fun, and that everyone—organizers and musician—loved doing it. He added that for these kids, a chance like this could be the start of a career in music performance or the beginning of a rewarding and enriching lifelong hobby!