The cadre of the top 20 contestants on the upcoming season of Sunday Best range in age from 21 to 52. In the season premier they will sing a capella for the first time to be narrowed down to a core group of 10 who will compete throughout teh season. Who will make the cut? The Slice Report will be covering the sing-off competition all the way through so be sure to check back here for updates.
(NEW YORK, NY) – June 21, 2019 – Returning from its four-year hiatus, America’s most inspirational singing competition, “Sunday Best,” makes its triumphant return to BET on Sunday, June 30that 8/7c with two brand-new back-to-back episodes. The well-established gospel show welcomes back Grammy Award®-winning music legend Kirk Franklin as host, gospel songstress and host of "Get Up Mornings," Erica Campbell as a judge; and added two Grammy-Award® nominated artists Kelly Price and Jonathan McReynolds as new additions to the panel. With a brand-new stage and exciting themed challenges, this season has narrowed down the competition to 20 finalists.
The new season kicks off for the first time ever with in-person auditions in front of the judges, with no audience. The contestants have to show their true talent, with no smoke and mirrors, by performing acapella with no band support, as they narrow the field from 20 to the top 10. For the first time the contestants were able to use an online submissions process, after which the team lead a global search for this year’s contestants, leading up to the much-anticipated live auditions in Dallas, TX, Washington, D.C., Atlanta, GA, and Detroit, MI, Lagos, Nigeria and for the first time-ever London, England and Johannesburg, South Africa, which were open to select international contestants. The top 20 contestants are:
- Antonio Santora, 31, Durham, North Carolina
- Ashley Barnes, 24, Memphis, Tennessee
- Brielle Frage, 21, Avenel, New Jersey
- Cornelius Edwards, 33, West Palm Beach, Florida
- Chelsey Barnes, 22, Memphis, TN
- Emorja Roberson, 27, South Bend, Indiana
- Jamal Roberts, 22, Meridian, Mississippi
- James Thompson, 23, Derby UK
- Jason Warrior, 23, Chicago, IL
- Joshua Copeland, 37, Salisbury, Maryland
- Kayva Offord, 27, Orange, Texas
- Keyla Richardson, 22, Pensacola, Florida
- Lakeesha Rice, 36, Greensboro, North Carolina
- Linda Williams, 52, University Heights, OH
- Melvin Crispell III, 21, Charlotte, North Carolina
- Opal Staples, 38, Chicago, IL
- Roy Moye, 26, Wichita, Kansas
- Tiffany Andrews, 35, Newark, New Jersey
- Tiffany Moore, 35, Augusta, Georgia
- Yoonjung Park, 32, South Korea
Jesse Collins, CEO of Jesse Collins Entertainment (BET Awards, The New Edition Story), serves as executive producer of season nine of Sunday Best along with showrunner Josh Greenberg (The Sing-Off, Lip Sync Battle). Dionne Harmon (The Bobby Brown Story, Hip Hop Squares) and Jeannae Rouzan–Clay (Dear Mama, Black Girls Rock!) and are co-executive producers.
For updates and more information about “SUNDAY BEST”, please visit BET.com/SundayBest. Join the conversation on social media by logging on to our social media platforms using the hashtag: #BETSundayBest.
WATCH THE VIDEO BELOW TO SEE THE JUDGES SHOW OF THEIR GOSPEL MUSIC SKILLS IN A GAME CALLED WHO RAN IT?