By Morgan James
Week #1 of the CV Open Mic Competition 2017 at The Block Sports Bar & Grill in Cathedral City brought on some enthusiastic performers who took the stage with confidence and conviction. Live video feeds filled social media and photos flashed throughout the night. Audience giveaways like t-shirts from The Block and Brutal Bee Music Group got the crowd roaring for a chance at a quality, custom t-shirt. Our judge had a tough time scoring all of the talent, although our new scoring system implemented kept things running smoothly and fairly for all. Once the votes were tallied, it was Daniel Scopelitis performing as Fantasma Satanica who was awarded 1st place. The theatrical performer took home a $25 gift certificate to The Block and will now move on to the Semi Finals May 17th. If he wins there, Daniel will compete in the Grand Finals on May 24th for an MTV Quality Music Video Production from Desert C.A.M. Studios/Winmill Films and award winning Director Chip Miller, plus a $500 trip to Las Vegas from Crater Lake Rye Whiskey, as well as an Artist Development Session from Grammy nominated Producer Ronnie King, a Promotional Photo Shoot from Rav Holly, and an artist merchandise package from Brutal Bee Music Group including logo design and 25 t-shirts, stickers and more! 2nd place was awarded to singer/songwriter and storyteller Jim Holiday who chose to took home a $25 gift certificate to The Block. 3rd place went to rapper Frankie Lopez aka Wrist-Lock who also took home a $25 gift certificate to The Block.
THANK YOU to ALL our performers at the CV Open Mic Competition for putting on a great show AND making the environment so supportive for all of the artists involved: Daniel Scopelitis, Jim Holiday, L Boogie Da Mann and Zack No Slack of Desert Pirates, Christopher Guzman of Who Shot the Drummer, Gabriel Reyes aka MCKG, Frankie Lopez, Andrew Pauldo aka Drew West, James Vasquez aka Music on the Bones, Moses Osmosis, Markie Avila aka Smokie Da Bandit, Kody Gross aka KodeMan Ceno, Luis Hernandez aka Wrekless, Erick Estrada aka Zero Sum Game. Also a big thanks to Johnny Carmona, our amazing sound technician. I hope to see you all next WEDNESDAY at THE BLOCK SPORTS BAR & GRILL in Cathedral City! Look for coverage of this week’s event and the announcement of winners in the next issue of Coachella Valley Weekly! SPECIAL THANKS to all of our sponsors: Desert C.A.M. Studios/Winmill Films & Chip Miller, Ronnie King Music, Crater Lake Rye Whiskey, Rav Holly, Stuft Pizza Bar & Grill, CV Weekly, Canyon Copy & Print, Brutal Bee Music Group, and The Block Sports Bar & Grill.
Be sure to “LIKE” Facebook.com/CVOpenMicCompetition for updates! ALL AGES ALLOWED and YOU may compete EVERY week! PLEASE NOTE: Due to our overwhelming number of interested performers, sign in starts at 7pm and will be closed at 7:45pm. BRING YOUR FRIENDS, FAMILY and FANS to join us for excitement, music and fun!!! For questions or information about sign-up, please see Facebook.com/CVOpenMicCompetition or contact creator and host, Morgan Alise James at MorganAliseJames@gmail.com or (714) 651-1911
