Weather couldn’t hold back the talent of ULM students for long.
The Campus Activities Board presented its annual ULM’s Got Talent show Wednesday night in Brown Auditorium.
The campus closures due to snow and ice in the week prior pushed back the event originally scheduled for Thursday, Feb. 26.
Fourteen students showcased their abilities and competed for monetary prizes. ULM graduate Alberta Green hosted the show once again with co-host Timothy Perkins, a senior kinesiology major.
The hosts encouraged audience members to participate in games between performances. Students jumped on stage to showcase their dance moves to win ULM memorabilia.
Tate Sibley and Wyatt Medlin volunteered for and won a dance-off during the night. Sibley said he enjoys ULM’s Got Talent because it allows people a chance to show off something special.
“I especially enjoy that they get the audience involved. It gets you invested in what is going on onstage and really helps you appreciate what it’s like to be on stage,” said Sibley, a junior kinesiology major.
The judges scored the actual contestants’ acts based on creativity, showmanship, level of talent, stage presence and overall impression.
The show featured multiple musical acts, such as a duet by Montanna Miller, a freshman English major and Lea Trisler, a freshman speech pathology major. Miller and Trisler performed the Hunter Hayes song “Wanted.”
The jazz trio “The Sensible Things” comprised of music education majors Mason Howard on drums, John Farmer on guitar and Tyler Schweinefus on bass performed Wayne Shorter’s “Footprints.” The familiar trio performs regularly outside of the campus Starbucks.
Students such as Nathan Roberts III put their musical creativity to the test. Roberts, a sophomore graphic design major, surprised the crowd with his original song “Chains” that he sang and rapped as he also played guitar.
One student musician, Emily Lovelady, secured third place overall. Lovelady, a senior elementary education major performed the song “Don’t Rain on My Parade” from the Broadway musical “Hairspray.”
Nepalese student Kshitiz Rana Magar realized his rap dreams with a rendition of Chris Brown’s “Look at Me Now” that featured Lil Wayne and Busta Rhymes. Magar said he always wanted to perform the rap on stage and was thrilled ULM gave him a chance to do that.
“Hearing the crowd sing with me and cheer for me made me feel like a winner,” Magar said.
Other student performers fueled laughter and mesmerized the audience with their moves.
Michael Roboski, a senior marketing major, entertained with stand-up comedy about college designed to feature his famous impressions, which included Shaggy from Scooby Doo, Kermit the Frog, and Hank Hill from “King of the Hill.” The comedian hosts a weekly podcast on southern nerd culture free on iTunes and Sound Cloud called “The Robot Sky.”
The first place winner of ULM’s Got Talent, Kayla Stiles, tapped to the top with the song “Boom I Got Your Boyfriend.” Stiles, a freshman pre-pharmacy major and Hawkline member, has danced for 18 years. Her prize was $400.
Sisters Hannah and Sarah Griffith, both dual enrollment students, juggled their way to second place for a $200 prize.
This year’s judges were Derle Long, the director of the School of Visual and Performing Arts; Kelsey Bohl, Hawkline coach; Matthew James, professor of music and Ahmaad Solmone, enrollment services specialist.
