While NBC’s American Song Contest has only been around for a short amount of time, each episode has taken social media by storm with trending topics worldwide. When the first round of semi-finalists were announced last week, it was no surprise that there was a lot of excitement around the big reveal.
If you don’t know what this new competition show is, here’s the scoop. American Song Contest is hosted by Snoop Dogg and Kelly Clarkson and features live new music performances from all 50 states, five U.S. territories and the nation’s capital, competing to win the country’s vote for the best hit song. These 56 artists span a wide range of performers, from undiscovered talent, up-and-coming new artists, and rising stars to established and legendary icons.
Celeb Secrets hopped on a Zoom call with the first batch of semi-finalists from the song contest stage. Ada Leann, Allen Stone, Hueston, Jared Lee, Jonah Prill, Jordan Smith, MARi, Ni/Co, Riker Lynch and Ryan Charles opened up about their time on the show so far, what fans can expect next and more.
When asked what it’s like to open up on such a global level, Michigan singer Ada Leann revealed that although it’s scary, fear can be a driving force.
“I want to be a voice for teenagers like me and I’ve said that a lot of the time it’s difficult for us to share our emotions without feeling or being neglected a little bit, especially by the older generation,” Leann explained. “So, in the sense of thinking I was going to get a bit of backlash I was nervous, but I just want to be as honest and vulnerable with my music and that’s what I brought to the stage and I’m happy with it.”
While Leann faced the challenge of being the youngest contender in the semi-finals, Kentucky singer, Jordan Smith, is happy to get back on stage after winning season 9 of NBC’s The Voice. Even though Smith loves being on stage he was quick to explain that it’s not all glamour and fun.
“Everything here is all about making the best television possible. If you could see some of the things we go through to get on that stage and look and do our best, you would laugh,” Smith laughed. “I’m pretty sure I had women’s pads under my armpits and my back to absorb all the sweat. So nothing is as it seems, it seems really glamorous and exciting until you start peeling back the layers.”
Montana singer Jonah Prill took the stage by storm with his performance of “Fire It Up,” but this isn’t the first time Prill has been around other live talent. With his grandfather being Dean Evans it’s no surprise that he tries to take inspiration from his family.
“I definitely still take inspiration from my grandfather, I saw his yesterday and we were just kinda joking around about how we’re the two musical cowboys in the family, and we can kinda connect on a different level now and in a different way, so that’s definitely where I draw the inspiration from and I think I always will.
From family to childhood memories, these contestants are all inspired by different things. Washington’s Allen Stone, opened up to us about how growing up on gospel music made him the person and powerful artist he is today.
“From a young age I’ve always loved the communal experience of creating something from the ether, recording it and if it’s good singing and performing it with as many people as you want. is where my joy comes, and that’s what I’ve always taken from the craft of the art.”
From writing and producing for artists from Jason Derulo and Jordin Sparks to TIESTO and Michael Bolton, Massachusetts’ Jared Lee, is ready to take the American Song Contest stage again and bring that new “wow” factor to his performance of “Shameless” which he is extremely proud of.
“I’m definitely preparing, now that I know the layout of the stage I have a better sense of what it could be. But we’re still trying to figure out how the stage will look for future performances,” Lee explained. “I’m just really excited to perform the song again and I’m hoping that the people who watch the show already will get the chance to reconnect. And for people who haven’t watched the show before I’m excited to make an impression on them and I hope it’s a positive one because I’d like to stay in this and battle it up to win.”
While most contestants are focusing on their next performance, people like Rhode Island’s Hueston are brainstorming multiple things at once. From performing in a song competition to pitching a reality tv show to NBC, he’s ready to leave his mark in the entertainment industry.
“I was telling NBC that they need to do a side reality tv show with me and Ryan Charles cause it would be hilarious,” he reveals. “I don’t know what it would be called but we call ourselves the lobster boys, because we were out at the pool the other day and we got sunburnt super bad. I don’t know why we started calling each other that but we’re just goofballs we like to have fun, and everyone on set thinks we’re funny so I told them to tell me when they want to have a meeting about the tv show cause I know we’ll get a lot of viewers.”
Within this long list of semi-finalists Celeb Secrets got the chance to catch up with on of our favorite Colorado artist, Riker Lynch. Lynch has been in the entertainment industry for many years but after his ride leading up to this moment, he revealed that he wishes he had enjoyed the little moments more.
“If I could tell my younger self anything, I would tell myself to enjoy the journey, you know you’re going to have goals and you’re going to have a destination but just enjoy the journey that is life,” he shared. “You know, once you get to your destination, it will be like, ‘okay where’s my next destination,’ so if you don’t enjoy the moments like this show, then you’re just missing out on life.”
Although all the performances in the show so far have been amazing, we had to give props to New Hampshire artist MARi, for taking her stage presences the extra step further and incorporating her amazing fashion sense.
“I love fashion and I think it goes hand in hand with music, and it has to go according to feeling,” she explained. “So, if I feel like wearing huge orange fur with my triple stacked wig then that is what I’m gonna do. So, I think you’re going to be surprised about what you’re going to see coming up in my next performance.”
From getting everyone on their feet to blending different sounds that anyone from Snoop Dogg to Kelly Clarkson can love, Wyoming artist Ryan Charles is ready to one up his last performance to get to the next round.
“It’s wild, I mean I loved my first performance with the dancers and the stage,” he said. “It was all so cool to me. So to get the chance to go do it again makes me really excited, and I’m definitely going to bring that ‘new boot goofin’ energy back again.”
This power duo considers themselves to be less experienced than everyone else, but from their perfect harmonies, heartfelt lyrics and a pep talk from Kelly Clarkson herself, Alabama duo Ni/Co said this whole ride has been an out of body experience.
“We had a moment during a commercial break and Kelly was sitting behind us, and she looked back and we caught eyes and she gasped and ran over to us,” they explained. “This whole thing felt like an out of body experience because we had no idea what she was going to say to us, and she said ‘I’m so glad I recognized you guys! I went down a rabbithole of your music and social media, no matter what happens tonight never stop making music.’”
You can watch new episodes of American Song Contest on Monday nights from 8:00-10:00 pm ET/PT on NBC.
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