Local talent contest leading up for fair final

Jeff Helsdon, Editor

It doesn’t feature Howey Mandel, but Tri-County’s Got Talent has the same musical thrust as Canada’s Got Talent.

Three try-outs are being held prior to the final at this year’s Tillsonburg Tri-County Fair on Aug. 15.

Although talent shows have been held by the fair in various forms in the past, this is the first time it is being held in this format, and the first after a multi-year hiatus.

“It needs to be done,” said organizer Kim Sage. “It’s something new to the kids, something to bring the music talent out - there’s so much untouched talent out there.”

The first tryout was held on July 11 at the Copper Mug. Jonathan Hilliker won, singing two original songs and a Stone Temple Pilots song. Sage pointed out participants can choose to present original numbers or covers. Three winners are chosen to advance to the final, plus an alternative in case one of the winners can’t attend.

Daniel Jones, lead singer of Sugar Kings, Sally Jo Atkinson-Jones, and Chris Soares from Country 107 were the judges.

There were seven entries in the first tryout.

Sage contacted about 15 venues to spread the tryouts across the area. Although two were interested, they had prior commitments this year. The next tryouts will be Aug. 1 and Aug. 5 at the Copper Mug.

The finals will be held at the fair bandshell on Aug. 15, with the winner announced the next day. The stakes are high, and in a similar vein to Canada’s Got Talent, but minus the six and seven-digit payouts. The winners will receive a recording session at Handmaid Studio in London and a record with their songs on it, plus be featured on Country 107.

Sage said anyone wanting to enter just needs to show up on the night of the tryouts. Background music will be provided, but the singers need to know the words to the songs.

“They definitely do not need to be professional,” Sage said.

She pointed to the fourth-place finisher in the first competition as an example, a person who was convinced by her friends to run.

“Years later you aren’t going to say you went in front of Simon Cowell, but you could say you went in a singing contest,” Sage said.