Stephanie Petrimoulx works the crowd during her contest performance at Willew.
(MyBayCity Photo by Sean Connelly)

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Willew Singers "Kick It Up A Notch" at Michigan Idol Week Six

February 26, 2012       Leave A Comment
By: Sean Connelly

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Week six of Michigan Idol at the Willew in Bay City proved to be the best yet.

The judges were full of compliments and enthusiasm for the contestants as the singers all really stepped up their game to let everyone in attendance know why they should win.

"Everyone's kicking it in to high gear," Dave Bernreuter , one of the judges this season exclaimed, "The next [four] weeks are going to be hell!"

The contestants seemed to be finding their comfort zones. Their song selections and stage presence have vastly improved, choosing songs that really compliment their vocal talent and entertain the crowd at the same time.

"Nobody in here could do that song better," OJ Cunningham, MyBayCity Publisher and judge for Idol, told Adam Simmons after his soulful performance of a Johnny Cash tune. The compliments just kept on coming for the competitors, including Marty Hofelich, who got a "That was just freaking awesome" out of Cunningham after his riveting performance of Eminem's Love the Way You Lie.



Even one of the new contestants, Betty Martinez, was in a groove of her own. Her background in singing and playing guitar definitely helped. "We came here to have a beer after work," said Martinez, "and saw [the competition]." Betty won her last singing competition at the Sebewaing Sugar Festival and decided to give Michigan Idol a go at the Willew. Martinez is excited to return next week, "This is a blast!"

Another new contestant, Jordan Lindow, used her background in live theater to grab the judges attention. "I've been taking singing lessons since I was nine," said Lindow about her resume. "I've been in musical theater, and I even have a Theatre major." Jordan was introduced to the competition through her friends and fellow competitors Amanda Glashauser and Renee Pawloski, both of whom also have their own history with musical theater.

In addition to the new contestants this week, there were some familiar faces returning to the Willew for this season of Idol. Tim Bruski, who won last season's grand prize, was out in support of Raelyn and Morgan Hawkins.

The Hawkins family came out to the Willew with ash crosses on their foreheads after attending church for Ash Wednesday. Faith is something that Bruski, along with the Hawkins family, takes very seriously. "If you don't have faith in your life," Bruski added, "then everything's just kind of empty."

The evening's performances wrapped up with Stephanie Petrimoulx and Travis Paten showing the other contestants what stage presence is all about.

Taking full advantage of a wireless microphone, Petrimoulx wowed the crowd when she actually got up on a table to sing Lady Gaga's You and I. (The Willew would like contestants to know that getting up on tables is not allowed in future performances.)

Not to be outdone, Paten made his way throughout the entire bar, dancing with patrons as he did so. "That was impressive," Jesse Fisher, a veteran contestant at Michigan Idol said, "and that's what it's going to take if you want to win this thing," Fisher added.

Michigan Idol is a 10 (ten) week competition that runs through March 21st, 2012 every Wednesday night at the Willew in Bay City. Warm ups start at 7PM, with the actual competition starting around 8PM.

The grand prize for this season is a 50+ inch flat screen TV, provided by Millar's TV and Appliance, and an XBOX 360 with four games, provided by Game On of Bay City.



PERFORMERS FOR WEEK SIX WERE



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The Michigan Idol Show is Sponsored by:

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