When to watch
What: “The Sing-Off”
When: Monday nights at 8 p.m. on NBC
MASON — Danielle Withers of Mason used to sing in the halls for her family. Monday she sang on TV for the nation.
Withers, a 2002 Mason High School graduate and former homecoming queen, performed with the group Afro-Blue on the competition show “The Sing-Off,” airing Mondays on NBC.
Judges and audiences liked Afro-Blue well enough to advance them to the next round. The group sang “Put Your Records On,” by Corinne Bailey Rae.
Singer Sara Bareilles, one of the judges, told the group, “I was thoroughly entertained and was sucked in from the beginning ... You’re all very good-looking, in addition to sounding amazing.”
“I’m feeling great,” Withers said after the broadcast, having returned home for a viewing party Monday night. “You never realize what it means until you see yourself on TV. It’s amazing and surreal and a lot of things.”
That feeling has rippled through the Withers household as well.
“The house is electric,” said her sister, Sakita Withers. “She’s been singing since she could talk. She had her karaoke machine out in the hallway, and now here she is out on stage for the world to hear her.”
After graduation, Danielle Withers headed to Washington, D.C., to attend Howard University, also attended by singers such as Roberta Flack and Donnie Hathaway.
While at Mason High School, she actively sang and played Dorothy in the award-winning version of “The Wiz,” said Tracey Carson, district spokeswoman.
Elanie Santos, the MHS vocal director, said “Danielle was a very good MHS student with an outstanding voice. We are so proud of her and hopeful she will capture America’s heart with her talent.”
“The Sing-Off” features 16 a capella groups with no backup bands, lip-synching or safety net. The winner of the show gets a Sony Music recording contract and $200,000. The show is hosted by Cincinnati’s Nick Lachey, and the other judges are Ben Folds and Shawn Stockman of Boyz II Men.
Afro-Blue’s next appearance on “The Sing-Off” is slated for Oct. 3. Danielle Withers isn’t at liberty to say what the group will sing, but she did say that she’ll get a solo.
“It’s a great song, I can tell you that,” she added.
Whatever happens with the show, Withers feels more opportunities at her feet. “I love being in L.A, and can get into TV, film and musical theater. Singing is everything, so this door opens me to those ventures,” she said.
Contact this reporter at (513) 705-2836 or eric.robinette@coxinc.com.
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