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Singers showcase talent, confidence during AMC Icon competition

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Bekah Phy
  • 305th Air Mobility Wing public affairs
McGUIRE AIR FORCE BASE, N.J. --  Singers had their game faces on during the Air Mobility Command Icon competition Aug. 14 at the McGuire Club. 

Twelve Team McGuire members and two Fort Dix members came out to prove they have what it takes to be named the first AMC Icon. 

"We were very pleasantly surprised at the number of contestants who signed up," said Daniel Cosgrove, 305th Services Squadron. "There are so many talented singers at McGuire and Fort Dix." 

Starting off the friendly competition was Tech. Sgt. Jon Taylor, 305th Aircraft Maintenance Squadron, who sang Dobie Gray's "Drift away." The competition continued with Janis Joplin's "Piece of my heart," performed by Jessica Weber, daughter of Col. Jim Weber, 305th Maintenance Group commander, Donna Summer's "Last dance," sung by Senior Airman Tausha Walker, 305th Aeromedical Squadron, and Airman 1st Class Justin Inman, 305th Logistics Readiness Squadron, singing the Temptations' "Just my imagination," to name a few. 

Col. Balan Ayyar, 305th Air Mobility Wing commander, Col. Ronald Thaxton, Fort Dix commander, Col. Michael Carrell, 305th Mission Support Group commander, and special guest Kartinya, former Air Force member and current recording artist, filled in as the judges. Mimicking Randy, Paula and Simon from the TV show American Idol, the judges were firm but fair throughout the competition. 

Offering constructive criticism to the contestants, the judges weren't shy when contestants seemed nervous or lacked energy. Many times, however, they praised the contestants' confidence, stage presence and sincerity. 

"I thought (your performance) was gritty, intense -- you really came to life," Colonel Ayyar said after the performance by Alisa Piteo, wife of Staff Sgt. Joseph Piteo, 305th Security Forces Squadron, who sang "Why haven't I heard from you?" by Reba McIntire. "I really enjoyed your performance," the colonel said. 

Hosting the event, with comedic interludes, was Senior Master Sgt. Phil "Big Phil" Gaudette, star of 305th SVS TV. He also offered motivating critiques to many contestants. "You're a lot of power in a pint-sized package," he said after Ms. Piteo's performance. 

After several performances, all eyes landed on Christina Sajous, daughter of Army Sgt. 1st Class Carol Jones, Fort Dix, who sang Whitney Houston's "I will always love you." After technical difficulties with her music, Ms. Sajous confidently said, "I'll just sing a cappella." 

With her rock-star image, including a spiked Mohawk, and cool confidence, the judges all agreed she commanded the stage, looked like a rock star, and blew them away. 

The singer, who revealed she recently finished a tour in the musical cast of "Rent," took home the first-place prize of $500. 

The crowd was very supportive of each contestant, cheering them on and jokingly booing when they disagreed with something a judge said. They even gave some contestants standing ovations for their performances.

"I admired each of the 14 competitors a great deal," said Daniel Cosgrove, 305th SVS. "During the event, Colonel Ayyar jokingly said he might rather be in combat than be up on that stage. He was being facetious, of course, but the point is, putting yourself out there like that in front of a crowd -- even a friendly crowd -- is very frightening. The contestants were all talented; each performance added to the event." 

"This is the first time I heard about this type of contest on base, and I am glad I went," said Senior Airman Nicole Gittens, 305th AMW safety. "I was amazed at the level of talent provided by both services ... I wish there were even more contestants willing to share their gifts, so I could enjoy the music and festivities longer. The crowd itself was very entertaining, and everyone was very supportive of the performers." 

In the end, the judges narrowed it down to three winners of the AMC Icon competition for McGuire. 

Following Ms. Sajous in first place, Army Sgt. 1st Class Eric Turner, Fort Dix Joint Readiness Center, sung a smooth rendition of Jeffrey Osborne's "Share my love" to earn the second place $300 prize, and Airman 1st Class Jeffrey Collins, 305th Civil Engineer Squadron, wowed the judges with Mark Schultz's "Letters from war" for the third place $200 prize. 

As the only Air Force active-duty member to place in the contest, Airman Collins will move on to Scott AFB, Ill., to represent McGuire in the AMC Icon competition finals Oct. 23. Each AMC base will have a representative in the finals to compete to be named the first AMC Icon and receive a non-binding audition/interview opportunity with the U.S. Air Force Tops in Blue. 

"I hope Airman Collins' is buoyed by his performance at McGuire," Mr. Cosgrove said. "His song touched both the judges and the crowd. I hope his week at Scott AFB is a blast." 

The AMC Icon competition was a success, but not without a lot of hard work from base personnel, Mr. Cosgrove said. 

"The competition brought a lot of people across the bases together and folks enjoyed it. A lot of effort went into it, and some of the folks helping were doing so on their off-time. The 305th CES powered the stage and The Club staff and other services members helped with setup and teardown. We also had volunteers tabulating the judge cards, manning the bounce house and snow-cone machine." 

Members of the audience at the AMC Icon competition already seem to be looking forward to the possibility of a second round next year. 

"I think this would be a great summer competition to look forward to every year," Airman Gittens said. "A lot of talented singers may not have known about the contest this time around, and if it was an annual event, it would only become bigger and singers would look forward to it and prepare for it more in advance ... and although I think the judges did any excellent job in choosing the winners, I would have liked for the crowd to have a say as well - maybe (next year) we could help rate the contestants."