FAMU’s first “Showtime at the Apollo” may have put talent on stage, but standing in front of critical crowd sent some of the performers back behind the curtain.
“It was horrible, said Precious Boone, 19, a sophomore criminal justice student from Miami. “The talent was no good. Everyone got booed.”
The show took place Friday night in Lee Hall.
Around 8 p.m., the lights dimmed and the sounds of Odyssey, a local Neo-Soul band and house band for the event, flowed from the stage.
After several vibrant yet smooth jazzy selections, the audience was prepared to see what talent would receive their applause or become swept aside by “Sandman”.
Throughout the evening, nine acts walked their way on stage, but only five returned to receive final judgment.
It was not until the third act when the initially timid audience, built up enough nerve to send someone off stage in the middle of his or her performance.
First to go was “Eddie” who sang Usher’s “Bedtime.” During a sad struggle to at least make it to the chorus, a disapproving crowd drowned the singer out.
Acting as the evening’s host was radio station’s WWLD Blazin 102.3 on-air personality, Edwin “Ed the World Famous” Sylvain, who reminded the audience they could clap and boo as they pleased.
“Remember this is Showtime at the Apollo,” he said.
“Who becomes the winner is up to you.”
The fifth act was a rap duo from California who went by the name, Kemistry. The group was the first to perform without any negative feedback from the audience. They performed an original piece. With their laid-back lyrics and movements Kemistry had a definite chance of becoming the evening’s winners.
Giving Kemistry a little competition was another duo called Epitome, but they did not rap. Instead, the two ladies in the group sung a compilation of 80s hits. The energetic pair did get their share of boos from the audience, but managed to groove their way as one of the finalist.
In the end, Kemistry received the most applause as FAMU’s first “Showtime at the Apollo” winners.
Kemistry group member Bruce Strouble said he was surprised to see so many people thrown out the competition.
“I thought the talent was incredible,” said Strouble, 21, a senior African-American studies student from Pasadena, Calif.
“Regardless, what the audience thought, I’m pretty confident most of [the performers] will do something in music.”
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