The third annual Recovery Idol will take place on Saturday at Wichita’s Century II.
It’s similar to American Idol, the national singing competition that aired on FOX for 15 seasons. Artists who have beaten drug or alcohol addiction will compete onstage, showcasing their talent for the top award.
KMUW’s Carla Eckels recently went to an audition at the CrossOver Recovery Center and has this story.
Victor Fitz, manager of the CrossOver Recovery Center
"The CrossOver Recovery Center is a safe place where individuals who want to be in recovery can come and be safe, away from the streets and any type of influences [that] may be negative towards them. It’s a place where they can come, get meetings in, come to treatment and interact with peer mentors. These are people who are in recovery, whose experience has been successful in recovery, so they can make a bond with people who are actually being successful in recovery and use those things to apply in their lives.
"We’re having auditions for Recovery Idol 2016: Living the Dream, and it is an event where individuals who always had aspirations for performing and using their talents for recovery, and they’ll get out, and we’ll provide a platform for them to perform onstage and just do those things that they’ve always wanted to do in their lives. A lot of really talented people have gotten off track, but it gives an opportunity to get back on track and pursue their life dreams."
John Agnew, judge
"They go to the club, they go to the bar, you know, you’ve got a beer in your hand, you go to a barbecue, and so those are the images we have in our head of fun, and [when] we stop drinking and using, we really don’t have that idea what is fun going to look like. We want them to know fun is exactly the way you think it is. It’s getting onstage singing. It’s having your family and friends clap and cheer for you. It’s having complete strangers say, 'Hey, you did a great job.' So that’s what we’re trying to promote."
Misty Maxwell, judge
"It’s finding that ability to reach your true potential. When you are stuck or locked or buried in an addiction, where is your potential? It’s buried down there with you, and recovery allows you to explore all that to truly reach your potential and above."
Mandy Veach, judge
"I was extremely impressed [with the talent]."
Michael Bayouth, vocalist and 2014 Recovery Idol winner
"I wanted to get involved in this one because it had to do with performing and competing, which is always kind of fun, but because it’s a fundraiser for SAC [Substance Abuse Center of Kansas] and is a source in our community that helps people with counseling, with getting through addictions, whether it be alcohol or drugs, and the counselors are great, and the staff is wonderful. It’s a real gem here in our community.
"I’ve been involved in recovery for many years, and that’s freed me up to pursue my music, and don’t have that ball and chain anymore that kept me down. Now, I’m free to study music and stay out of my own way and walk through fear."
Recovery Idol 2016 will take place at the Century II Concert Hall on Saturday, Sept. 10, at 7 p.m. The event is a fundraiser for the sobering and detox unit of the Substance Abuse Center of Kansas.
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Carla Eckels is assistant news director and the host of Soulsations. Follow her on Twitter @Eckels.
To contact KMUW News or to send in a news tip, reach us at news@kmuw.org.
