mosriteforum.com

Quite literally, a moment in the spotlight - Meshugga Beach Party appeared for a second on the NBC show America's Got Talent this past Wednesday, June 22nd. We were invited to audition, got flown to Portland, and competed in the first round of the competition. For better or worse, everyone loved us except the judges. Overall, a pretty crazy experience. We weren't allowed to take pictures or video while we were there, so that commemorates the event is this brief glimpse:

Perhaps MBP didn't fit into possible preconceived ideas/plans the 'judges' may have had
Anyway, your band did try..."nothing ventured, nothing gained" as the saying goes. Thanks for sharing, Mel

That sounds like a blast Mel! I wouldn't take it so personal though. These shows are extremely political. I have an acquaintance who was a singing coach on the first season of American Idol and he refused a second season because he saw that it was not really based on talent as much as who the judges wanted to promote. When Regis Filben was doing Who Wants To Be A Millionaire I auditioned for the show. I made it through the telephone questions, then drove to Sacremento where they had about 1,000 people from all over the US come for their written test. That test narrowed us down to 50. Then they broke us into groups of five and asked us the dumbest hypothetical question, "if you were stuck on a remote island who would you want with you". I realized the purpose was to film each of us talking to see what we looked like. There are lots of intelligent people around the really they were just looking for interesting people who would make Regis look good and the show get good ratings.

The moral of the story is it ain't really about the talent.

So what song did you play, and what did the judges have to say?

We had no illusions that we had any chance to win the contest. We figured it was worth doing for the experience and hopefully, publicity. It was wild to be on that stage - you go out there, the judges ask a few questions, then you get 90 seconds to do your shtick. You either get buzzed out, or the judges vote to have you continue or not.

Had a few back and forth laughs answering Howie Mandell's questions - i.e. Howie: "I understand Jews and desert, but Jews and surfing? Didn't Moses part the Red Sea so the Israelites wouldn't have to get wet?" Me: "True, but we think that when Moses said to Pharoah 'Let My People Go' he really meant 'Let My People Go Surfing'" We played, about halfway through Piers buzzed us, then as we were about to finish Sharon and Howie buzzed us in quick succession. The buzzer is so loud it shakes the building!

In the end Sharon and Howie said they think we'd be great at a bar mitzvah, but aren't right for AGT. My guess is they saw our act as a hot potato, which isn't surprising. But more importantly to me, the crowd really loved us. Playing in front of 5000 wildly cheering people in a fancy auditorium was great. Plus, we got our moment on national TV. So overall a positive experience on our part!

Good for you Mel! Sometimes staying true to your artistic vision can be a double edged sword. I commend you for spreading some tolerance and fun thru music...not to mention you guys are a great band as well. Well done.

Cool for you. Too bad for them.
Jim

I get the feeling they don't move too many bands past round 1. There is this 8 year old kid in Texas that plays guitar, accordion, and piano that made on the show and started the Beer Barrel Polka and they buzzed him out quick saying it wasn't their thing and they didn't like it. Maybe they just don't move bands on.

Thats cool on steroids Mel! I think that is hillarious and typical that the judges ( putzes ) were judgemental over the crowd reaction. I do watch the show on occasion with my youngest daughter. When does it air? I would LOVE to see you guys on prime time!

Rock n Bagel!

Bob

LOL, that's super great, Mel. Please allow me to say: 'glad you didn't make it though'