As an average college student, I didn’t think that I would ever find myself standing inside the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center in Rosemount, Illinois with my friend Bronte. “This was it,” I told myself, trying to breathe as I had a wave of sheer panic suddenly come over me. The day was January 18th, 2014 and I was going after my dream and trying out for The Voice.
Many people asked me why I was doing something so crazy, and to me it really wasn’t all that crazy. I was just an average girl going after a dream that I’d had since as long as I could remember. A lot of kids said they were going to be doctors or astronauts but me, I was going to be a singer and nothing was going to stand in my way. I knew I was in most likely never going to be famous, and that was okay with me. I didn’t need everyone to know who I was, I just wanted to make people as happy as singing made me.
As I think back to standing in line I can vividly remember all of the people around me practicing their songs with so much confidence. When you are a kid, you don’t worry about what people think and it’s so much easier to do something you love and not worry about any judgment from others; in that moment I wished I was a little kid again. I wasn’t used to singing in front of a big group of people, and I barely even sang for my friends because I lacked the confidence, along with having stage fright.
My friend, Bronte, had so much confidence and as I stood there watching her practice her song she urged me to snap out of my nervous state and do the same. I didn’t know if I could do it so I just shrugged it off and continued to watch her. As a little more time passed, we started talking to some of the other people who were trying out as well, they all started singing their songs for our tiny group and one by one it was finally my turn. I don’t know what came over me, but all of a sudden I wasn’t scared anymore and I felt like the little kid who didn’t care what anyone thought.
After waiting almost two hours, and moving to many different parts of the convention center, I was finally in the small room with 9 other people who would sing for a producer of the show. I didn’t think I would be fortunate enough to be with Bronte and I thank my lucky stars that she was with me that day. She helped me realize that I could do anything I set my mind to. I didn’t go to the audition to care what other people thought about me, I went to the audition because I had a dream and I believed that I could do it.
I was taken by surprise when I ended up being the second person to sing, I didn’t think that I could do it but I closed my eyes and thought about all of the amazing people I had in my life and I sang like I had never sang before. I sat down and watched the other contestants sing too, proud of what I had just done. I didn’t get a call back and that was okay with me because I gained a newfound confidence that I never had before.
Flash forward to 2016, I couldn’t contain my excitement as I once again headed to Illinois to audition for The Voice a second time. This time I went to the Navy Pier Convention Center located in Chicago. With the confidence gained from my audition a little over two years ago, I was very excited to see what February 6th had to offer.
With no callback in hand, I can still say that I did my absolute best. I think that the nerves took over more than I had anticipated because more time had passed since the last time I had really performed in front of anyone. I was happy that I got to make a weekend out of it with some of my amazing friends. It was nice to know that while I was waiting for hours on end, my support system was waiting for me no matter how my audition went.
It is one of the most rewarding experiences that I have ever had and the fact that I went in front of the talent scout proves to myself that if I work hard enough, maybe, just maybe, I can accomplish a dream that I’ve had since I was a little girl. My words of advice? Never be afraid to go after your dreams, no matter how scary they may be, you can surprise yourself with how amazing you feel even if it doesn’t go the way you want it to.