Mason Kerby, a Wylie freshman, won the Abilene Idol competition at the Abilene Convention Center in February.
“It was pretty crazy,” Mason said. “I really thought I would make the finale, but I didn’t think I would win the whole thing.”
Abilene Idol is patterned after the hit show American Idol and is a fundraiser for Chorus Abilene.
Two years ago, Mason’s dad, Jason, won 3rd place in the Abilene competition.
“I auditioned last year, but I had the flu,” Mason said. “So I didn’t sing my best.”
So he tried again this year.
The competition begins with auditions performed in the Mall of Abilene. Mason said that 80 people auditioned in that first round, with only 15 chosen for the finale.
“I felt like there was a lot of talent there,” Mason said. “Beforehand I was getting nervous. But I sang, and it felt pretty good. I was excited to see that I had made it to the top 15.”
The finale was at the Convention Center with each of the 15 contestants performing. Mason sang Speechless in both rounds of the competition.
Masons said he has been singing since he was very young.
“I’ve been singing as long as I can remember,” he said. “I sang every once in a while on Sunday morning in front of the church. My dad always sang, so it came naturally to me.”
He said he didn’t really have any expectations when entering the competition.
“I was just hoping to show people what I can do and show people that if you work hard at something, you can do it,” he said. “I was going to be happy either way. I didn’t think there was a real possibility that I would win.”
Mason received a trophy and $600 for winning the competition, which was decided by a panel of three judges plus online and audience voting.
“I also got the title of 2019 Abilene Idol Winner,” he said. “That in itself is pretty cool.”
Mason plays football and baseball at Wylie and is involved in theater. But he hasn’t done anything musical, so his victory came as a surprise to some of his classmates and teachers.
What they don’t know is that Mason has performed at Sharon’s Barbecue and Lytle Land and Cattle several times, and after his recent success, he is toying with the idea of auditioning for one of the major talent programs like American Idol or the Voice.
“I really don’t know what God’s plan is for me in the future,” he said. “It would be really cool to have a career in music. I don’t know. God has a plan for me. I’m sure music will have some role in my life.”