Majesty Rose chosen to perform in state showcase
By Phyllis Moore
Published in News on November 1, 2015 3:05 AM
A showcase of talent available for booking at theaters like the Paramount and other venues will be held next week in Durham.
More than 200 from the U.S. and Canada applied for a slot on the three-day ArtsMarket program, with only 39 selected.
Majesty Rose of Goldsboro is among them.
Paramount Theatre Director Sherry Archibald is a member of the N.C. Presenters Consortium, which has been around more nearly 30 years. The state is unique, she said, in that surrounding southern neighbors like South Carolina, Virginia and Georgia have nothing like that.
"It's a lot of collaboration without the competition," she said. "The consortium and N.C. Arts Council put this on every other year, every other November."
The process for acts vying to be on the program is highly competitive, Mrs. Archibald said. The application process began in the spring, with 204 received this year and pared down in late summer.
"We try to have a variety of different types of genres and definitely want to have a good number from North Carolina," she said. "Out of the 39 (chosen) I think we have eight or nine that are just North Carolina. We have quite a few that come from Canada."
Majesty Rose is the Goldsboro singer who made it to the Top 10 of American Idol's 13th season. She wound up in ninth place, ensuring her a spot on the summer tour and has since been making appearances around the community and writing and performing.
One of those events was a hometown concert at the Paramount, where Mrs. Archibald said she mentioned the ArtsMarket as a good opportunity.
The showcase, held Nov. 2-4 at the Carolina Theatre in Durham, provides a sampling of the different talent and acts available to perform around the state in the future, Mrs. Archibald said. Each performer has 15 minutes to demonstrate what they do, with hopes of getting a place on the 2016-2017 line-ups.
"There will be about 500 guests there for the conference. The hope is that they'll be able to book or block book," she said, explaining that the latter means that venues may coordinate schedules for shows at a theater one night and then another in a nearby city the next night. The option is cost-effective for venues and provides additional opportunities for the performers, she said.
"It's very exciting that our local talent is in it," Mrs. Archibald said, adding that the area has been previously represented with such acts as the Malpass Brothers, who were chosen for the last showcase.
"It's really nice to have a little piece of home, especially someone as talented as they are and she is. And it's been exciting for her," Mrs. Archibald said. "I think it's a good door to open for her."
The Malpass Brothers benefited from the experience, she said, booking a lot of shows in North Carolina as well as South Carolina and Georgia.
Majesty said she is grateful and happy for the upcoming opportunity, which she admittedly almost missed.
"I was in New York this summer and the deadline was in a day so we had to scramble to get the application done," she said. "But I enjoyed doing the application because I talked about why I do things and what inspires me and stuff.
"Then I got accepted and I was really excited. "
She and her five-member band have been working up their repertoire, she said.
"I have never done anything like that, something that fast because it's a 15-minute show," she said. "I mean, we have our songs, we have our set list that we usually do but I have to find something that will be an attention-grabber. That'll be the next step in planning because I want something that will catch everyone's attention and be like a 'wow' factor."
In the 18 months since "American Idol," she has been busy writing music, marketing herself and working to advance her career. She has also been talking with an agent about representation.
So the showcase is just another move in a positive direction, as it presents the potential for additional exposure, she said.
"It's really exciting. This is the first time I've ever done something like this, I mean besides 'American Idol,'" she said. "That's the only other time I've ever been judged for my music.
"But this is definitely different. This is something that I've put together myself, like the show and how I format my songs and even with some of my original songs that we've done in my shows. I think this is really something different and cool and something I won't be afraid of at all."
Majesty said she is also looking forward to having a booth at the ArtsMarket, which she hopes will provide additional networking opportunities and a chance to share promotional materials, including a demo of new songs.
No matter where the road takes her, she maintains her allegiance to the hometown that has supported her throughout.
"Goldsboro's definitely always going to be my home," she said. "I know that my music is rather broad.
"I think about my songs a lot. I think about the best way to communicate who I think I am as an artist. And I just pray after that because seriously, I can do as much as I want but really the Lord establishes my steps and so I'm just trusting that He knows what is best for me."
Follow Majesty Rose on Facebook, Instagram and through her blog, #friendsarebetterthanfans.