William Clark Sr.
June 29, 2010
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July 1, 2010The cameras are rolling.
The flash bulbs are popping.
The lights go down as the competition dwindles until just one performer is left on stage.
Everyone in attendance sits on the edge of their seats anxiously waiting to see who’s going to be named the next Larose Park Idol.
It’s not quite American Idol, but it’s a stepping stone competition held every June in Larose where singers can begin to launch their musical dreams into the stratosphere.
In this year’s competition, a hometown girl with big aspirations took home this year’s $500 cash prize.
Fourteen-year-old Whitney Adams won her division for the third year in a row, but after finishing second in the overall contest last year, Adams climbed the mountaintop with a rousing rendition of “Home Sweet Home” by Carrie Underwood.
“I just like to sing,” said Whitney. “I choose songs that’ll show off my voice and I think that wowed the judges.”
It definitely did, according to one of the four “wowed” judges, Ann Duplantis.
“Whitney is a strong vocalist. She has very good personality on stage,” said Duplantis. “She’s a very polished signer. She deserved it.”
But strong competition didn’t make it easy for the country music specialist, especially from Kandace Washington, winner of the senior division.
Kandace’s performance of “For you I Will” by Monica in the final round received thunderous applause, but it wasn’t quite enough to earn a first place finish.
“I thought Kandace was a stronger signer in the first two rounds. I think based on the last song toward the end, Kandace went off just a little bit, and that was all Whitney needed, because I think Whitney had a better sustained performance,” said judge Kearnie Camardelle. “They were a hair apart, but I think the last performance made the deal. I judged them a half point off of each other.”
Winning the kids division was little Laura LeMaire who dazzled the audience with a cute face and a voice well beyond her years.
“You are a very awesome little girl, for your age to be able to belt out notes like that,” said Duplantis after Laura’s performance of “Tomorrow” from the musical Annie.
With Whitney’s overall victory, she will be asked to sing at the 37th Annual French Food Festival in October, and you can be sure the aspiring country singer will being her best voice once again.
But Whitney doesn’t want to limit her dreams to Larose.
“I really want to go to Nashville,” said Whitney. “It’s my dream to sing at the Grand Ole Opry.”
Wherever the Larose native goes from here, dreams have no ceilings for the winners of Larose Park Idol.
