Photo Credit | Kelsey Morris
This year the Student Activities Board hosted its annual talent show, Tech’s Got Talent, on Thursday, Oct. 10 in the Witherspoon Auditorium.
Of the eight competitors, senior biomedical science major Maggie Holcomb of Bixby, Oklahoma took home the grand prize of first place and $600.
“When I heard my name called as the first-place winner I was honestly in disbelief, and it felt amazing to be able to feel like my song resonated with the crowd,” said Holcomb.
Holcomb has been learning to play musical instruments for most of her life. She took a few music lessons until she was 11 years old where she learned how to play chords and read sheet music. It wasn’t until middle school that she began writing original songs, and it became a form of therapy for her.
In addition to playing the piano, Holcomb also taught herself to play the guitar and ukulele.
“I haven’t fully decided what to do with the [prize] money yet, but I do have a dream ukulele I’ve been looking at for years so that might be it,” Holcomb said.
Holcomb said that since she was a freshman her roommates have encouraged her to do Tech’s Got Talent, but she was always too apprehensive to go for it. Seeing as it is her senior year now, Holcomb decided to try it once, although it was scary for her.
The song she chose for the finale is titled “Central Park” and was written only a few days after submitting her audition video.
“When I realized we needed to have two different songs in the case of making it to the finals, I realized I wanted something new to perform if I moved on. It is about having only three minutes to sing and play, like in the rules for the competition, and how when it comes to writing it is easy for me to escape into a different world even if it only lasts so long,” said Holcomb.
The other seven acts that advanced to the finals were Kenleigh Garner, Seismic Waves, Jamie Walsh, Rue Recinos, Essynce Norwood, Promised Consort, and Hope Skinner.
Of these, Seismic Waves took home the second-place prize and Essynce Norwood received third place.
Students were able to vote for who they thought should win through a QR code displayed on-screen after all the acts had gone.
“I would just like to thank Tech and SAB for doing this every year, it was such a fun experience and so great to be able to perform alongside such talented people. I haven’t performed for a crowd in years, and it was incredible to be able to do it again with the support of so many people,” said Holcomb.
