Thu Sep 02 2010
by Emily Canning-Dean
Reporter
Twinsburg -- When Twinsburg resident Forbes Talley auditioned for American Idol in Louisville, Ky., back in July, he wasn't sure if he would make the first cut.
Talley, 17, was competing against 14,000 other contestants from across the Midwest. But when the contestant pool was narrowed to 400, Talley made the cut. He was still standing after the field was pared down to 200 contestants.
It wasn't until there were 18 contestants left in the Louisville competition that Talley was cut.
"I had gone with the hopes of making it to the celebrity round," Talley said. "In July, after standing in line for four or five hours, I performed and was asked to come back in September."
In September, Talley returned and sang "I'm Yours" by Jason Mraz in front of two talent agents that work for American Idol.
"One told me 'You light up the room,' and I was through to the next round," Talley said.
Later, Talley performed for the show's producers, and was again given the nod to the next round, which would see him perform in front of Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul and Randy Jackson.
"The next day I showed up at 6 a.m., and the celebrity judges didn't even show up until 2:30 p.m.," he said.
When Talley finally sang for the celebrity judges, he said he wasn't happy with his performance.
"I was just feeling so much pressure. It didn't sound bad, but mediocre and I'm not mediocre," he said. "Simon said I sounded like I could sing with the Partridge Family."
Talley said the audition was still a great experience.
"Before the audition, I had a chance to talk to Ryan Seacrest in the hall," he said. "That alone was worth the trip."
Talley said he hopes to audition for American Idol again, but right now is focusing on his senior year at Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy and applying for college.
"Right now I'm looking at Belmont College in Nashville, where I want to major in music business," he said.
Although Talley now wants to make a career out of music, there was a time when that was not the case.
"Forbes has always had a gorgeous singing voice," said Shonna Nitzel, Talley's mother. "But when he was younger he never sang in public."
"There was a time when I hated music," Talley said. "But my freshman year of high school, a friend of mine convinced me to join choir and everything changed."
During his time in choir, Talley said he learned about singer Josh Grobin, who was a big inspiration to him. Talley is now president of his school choir.
He said his next audition will probably be for his high school's upcoming performance of "Beauty and the Beast." But he said he isn't nervous about tryouts.
"After trying out for American Idol, I think I'm a lot more prepared for anything else," he said.
E-mail: ecanning@recordpub.com
Phone: 330-688-0088 ext. 3172
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