On Tuesday, April 3, the Campus Activities Board (CAB) will be sponsoring their ninth annual Southeaster Star competition, in the Student Union Theater at 7 p.m. This year, there will be 10 contestants singing for the judges in Southeastern’s own version of American Idol.

“There will be 10 people competing this year, and they are all singers. There wasn’t enough talent to fill any other category this year, so we just decided to go with the singers,” said CAB coordinator Todd McElroy.

The first ever competition was held in 2003, and since then the talent has varied, but ultimately it became more focused on singing. Some other talents shown in previous years include acting monologues and an Elvis impersonator.

The winners of the competition will win scholarships in a range of prices. The first place winner will win a scholarship of $500, second place will win $250 and third place will win $100.

Contestants include Cullen Davezac of The Broken Rubber Band, and Isaac Chatman, who just recently won second place in the NAACP Talent Show, and is a former third place winner from Southeastern Star 2008.

“When I heard about it this semester, I decided to do it again.  I’ll be singing ‘Ain’t Too Proud to Beg’ by The Temptations,” Chatman said.

Heather Hand, an Alpha Omicron Pi member who performed at Rock n’ Roar 2012 is a sophomore vocal performance major, and was also the winner of Southeastern Star 2011.

“My experience this year as Southeastern Star has been unforgettable. It was an honor to be able to represent Southeastern at various events, and I’m so excited to pass this title along to one of the contestants in April. I hope they enjoy the experience as much as I did,” said Hand.

The judges of the competition are still unknown to the public, but according to McElroy, “they both have musical backgrounds. We wanted people away from the university so we can keep it impartial. Both of them have been in bands and have lots of experience.”

The part of the competition in which students can get involved comes at the end when they vote for the winner. The crowd participation counts for one-third of the vote.

For more information on the contest and contestants visit CAB’s Facebook page at facebook.com/CABSLU.