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Community Corner

With a Song in His Heart

Hightstown's Antwan Michael is reaching for the stars in his pursuit of a career in music.

Antwan Michael has been singing since he’s 3 years old, and was a contesent during the 2010 season of “American Idol.” But for about six months, he wasn’t able to sing because of a condition called dysphonia, which he said affected his voice and made it difficult for him to sing.

“It’s basically a vocal defection that messes up your voice, like a guitar that’s out of tune,” Michael said. “When I would try to go for a note, I just couldn’t reach it. So it’s basically caused by stress and worry, just plain fear and things that go on in your life.”

For those six months, he didn’t sing, play piano or do much of anything. “Now I’m finally coming out of my funk and I’m ready to get back to what I’ll say I was born to do, which is singing,” he said.

He said he bounced back about two weeks ago, and now he’s getting ready for two high-profile auditions in South Carolina. He requested that the specific auditions not be mentioned, but let’s just say that if he goes far on his endeavors, you’ll be hearing a lot about him.

The trip is going to require money for gas and other expenses, so Michael performed a fundraiser concert on Saturday at Molte Bene in Highstown.

The 20-year-old Michael credits his mother Alice with a wide range of musical interest. Growing up, he listened to everything from Stevie Nicks to Lenny Kravitz, the O’Jays and Motown. Now, he likes everything from John Mayer to Justin Bieber. His favorite music style is country, with Carrie Underwood being his favorite country artist.

“I have a broad span of music, and I really account that to my mother and I thank her for teaching me such strong music appreciation,” he said, adding that his varied musical taste should help him on his auditions.

When asked if he’s confident that he’ll advance far in these endeavors or if he’s just going to do it and see what happens, Michael replies, “Both.” But there seems no doubt that he believes in his abilities.

“I’ve always been a very confident person in my voice because I’ve always known in a way that God has given me a gift that I have to use in some capacity,” he said. “And when there’s stress and you go through things, whether your break up with a girl or whether it be family problems or anything else, my voice just suffered.

“So I kind of lost the know-how and the reassurance that I know what I’m doing and this is where I belong. Now, I’m really sure in myself say, This is who I am and I’m a singer.”

And if things go well, he could find himself singing in front of some very big audiences.

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