SAFFORD — In an unprecedented move, the judges at the second Gila Valley Idol 2022 preliminary decided to send four contestants to the final instead of three.
Advancing to the finals was Paityn Mattice, of Pima; Zaylie Windsor, of Safford; Frank Adams, of Pima; and Kamea Nelson, of Pima.
Mattice sang the song “Stand Up,” from the 2019 film “Harriet,” about Harriet Tubman.
“I was a little nervous but, overall, I think it was a great song choice for me, and so I was pretty confident,” Mattice said.
Adams, who sang “On the Wings of Love,” is no stranger to the finals, having performed last year/
“I hope to do my best. And my thing is to be encouraging to the younger singers,” Adams said. “I’m 68 now, and I’ve been doing this for over 60 years, since I was 8 years old.”
Nelson sang “Don’t You Worry About a Thing.”
“I think that one just showed off my voice better, my range. And I really liked the runs,” Nelson said.
Despite her youth, Windsor, 15, is no stranger to competition, having been named a co-winner of Best Vocalist with her band mates, and her band taking second place overall, at the 2021 Battle of Bands event. She said that experience proved invaluable for Thursday’s performance.
“I think having had that experience gave me a lot of confidence to be able to do this tonight, and helps me get through the song and put emotion into it,” Windsor said.
Selected to perform again at the call-back night, March 10 at the Graham County Chamber of Commerce, was Skai Wahl, who sang “Rumour Has It”; Abagail Thomas, who sang “You Ain’t Woman Enough”; and Tyler Miller, who sang “Before You Go.”
Andelisia Hernandez was selected as an alternate. One alternate will be selected at each of the six preliminaries, and one of those six will move into the finals based on voting by the public on GilaValleyCentral.net.
Judges for the second preliminary were 2008 Gila Valley Idol winner Adam Crohn; 2012 winner Sharon Montoya; and 2014 winner Olivia Jeffs, who also performed “So Far Away.”
The audience was also treated to a performance by 2018 Gila Valley Idol winner Pete McCormick, who sang “My Girl.”
Performances can be viewed on GilaValleyCentral.net and the Kat Kountry Facebook page.
The next preliminary will take place Thursday, Feb. 10, at 6:30 p.m., at The Stadium Club in Thatcher. This preliminary and venue is 21-and-older only.
The finals will take place March 24 at the David M. Player Center for the Arts, and tickets can be purchased at Gila Idol 2022 Tickets in Safford, AZ, United States (ticketleap.com).
Sponsors of Gila Valley Idol include: Valley Telecom; OneAZ Credit Union; The Stadium Club; Freeport-McMoRan; Richard’s Music; The Double R Grill; Valley Furniture and Appliance; Tyson Richins-Edward Jones Investments; Swire Coca-Cola; Trophies ‘N Tees; and Double R Communications stations Kat Kountry 94.5 FM, Sunny 102.3 FM and KATO Am 1230.
