Sarah Vaughan Vocal Competition Now Accepting Entries

Written By Mike Greenblatt

In a quest to find the next great jazz singer, The New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC) is now accepting entries for the 13th annual Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition. Singers worldwide have until September 3 to register at https://www.njpac.org/sarah-vaughan-international-jazz-vocal-competition/. Singers must be 18 and not signed to any record label. They will be judged on “vocal quality, musicality, technique, performance, individuality, artistic interpretation and ability to swing,” according to NJPAC. Finalists will compete at NJPAC in Newark before a live audience on November 24 when a panel of judges will decide their fate.

Sarah Vaughan [1924-1990] came out of Newark to win a vocal contest in Harlem at The Apollo Theater.  She won $10 and a chance to open at the Apollo for Ella Fitzgerald. That’s where jazz giants Earl Hines and Billy Eckstine discovered her, took her on the road, and the rest, as they say, is history. She is now thought of as one of the greatest American voices of all-time. Two past winners of this competition—known as The Sassy Awards in honor of Vaughan’s nickname—include Cyrille Amie (now a major star) and Samara Joy (who won the “Best New Artist” Grammy Award last year).

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Mike Greenblatt

MIKE GREENBLATT has been writing for Goldmine magazine and New Jersey's Aquarian Weekly for more than 35 years. His writing subjects fill the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

He's interviewed Joe Cocker, Graham Nash, David Crosby, Carlos Santana, Bruce Springsteen, Paul McCartney, Johnny Cash, and members of The Rolling Stones and The Beatles. He was 18 when he attended Woodstock in 1969.

In addition to writing about music, Greenblatt has worked on publicity campaigns for The Animals, Pat Benatar, Johnny Winter, Tommy James and Richard Branson, among others. He is currently the editor of The Jersey Sound.

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