BMN Superfan - episode 4, season 2

The double elimination the week before puts the entire house on notice that anything can happen.

Once again, it's time to pick new teams for the next challenge.  But this time, it's done in a different way: Each contestant shoots an arrow at a target 12 feet away in a grassy area just outside the hotel.  The challenge simulates a common activity at Camp Paradise, where the winner will eventually go.  The one closest to the bullseye gets to pick his or her team for the elimination task later.  Oh, and one more thing: The participants are blindfolded.  Nonetheless, Adam, who has a professional bowhunting contract, is the winner, at just four inches from the center.  His picks are Brooke, Casey, Deb, and Meredith; so the other team is ButtaFly, Jason, Wayne, Pam, and Tim.

The team challenge is to re-create the bonfire barbeque shown in the season opener of What the Buck?  Of course, they can't use an actual bonfire, instead they go to the kitchen and dining area at Campbell University in Buies Creek to serve 151 students.

Adam puts Brooke in charge of the menu and preparation, but Brooke makes a huge mistake by putting too many items on the menu and having more food than she can afford.  On the other hand, the leftovers team argue so long about the menu that its shopping time is barely more than half that of Adam's team.

More drama occurs during the subsequent preparation: Wayne suffers minor burns from an overheated pot and Brooke and Deb shout loudly at each other in a dispute about preparation times.  But somehow, it all comes together for the serving.

During the service, students taste samples of both the barbequed ribs from Adam's team in the red-colored plates and the beef brisket from the other team in the blue-colored plates.  After they eat, they vote by putting a slip of paper with the appropriate color in a ballot box.  The first to reach 76 votes wins the challenge.  The vote is back-and-forth for about the first 60 ballots, until the blue team pulls away late, winning the task and safety for ButtaFly, Jason, Wayne, Pam, and Tim.

The judgment at the hotel is the easiest of the season, and possibly ever.  Brooke had overstuffed the menu, was rude to her fellow contestants, and didn't seem to sell hard enough when it came time to gather the votes.  It was so bad that Brandon McLamb reveals that, even if the red team had won, Brooke would still have been subject to elimination.  When it comes time to defend herself, Brooke simply tells the panel, "Well, I can't.  I should have done better, and I'm sorry,  I'm sorry for myself and my lovely kids."  With that, Brooke is sent home; at the end of the show, she says that her consolation is that she can return home to her three children.

A 'movie star' and a clown in the family

This week's additions to my Photoshop collection feature B.W.'s mother and brother.

As I have implied earlier, Brenda loves circuses, carnivals, and everything having to do with them.  And one of the things she has always wanted to be is a clown.  Here, she poses for such a picture just outside the family home.  The suit I found at Party City's website among hundreds of available costumes for sale in time for Halloween, and that's the same place I found the clown nose and horn.  Hands and feet are from the usual sources - the Brittany Barefoot senior party picture on Facebook and the barefoot lady on the roadside in Pennsylvania.  I made separate layers for the facial makeup.

In my summary of season 2 of Gone Barefoot, I mentioned the mock-up movie poster representing Bryson's love of cowboy culture and Western entertainment, and here is what it looks like.  Some explanations for the various parts: Las Positas, from the title, means "little wildflowers" in Spanish and I took it from a name of a community college in Livermore, CA on the edge of the San Francisco Bay Area.  Bubba Brister and Marianne Muellerleile I wrote about before; Corey MacWillie was the lead singer of betaBOOZEbrain, written about here; and "Robin-Lynn McClean" came from a phone directory (she lived in Arlington, VA).  "Great stories live for generations" is derived from a slogan used in my city of residence, Lakewood, CA, and also represents a potential revival of the Western genre.  Bryson was also dressed up in a Party City costume, the horse came from the Discover America website, and the backdrop photo was taken in the ghost town of Bodie, CA.   "Blackie Films" is suggested by the new Barefoot Family Farm mascot unveiled on the current season of BMN Superfan.

BMN Superfan - episode 3, season 2

With 12 contestants remaining, producers decide to shake up the teams.  A random draw realigns them into four trios, as follows: Brooke, Adam, and Casey; Jason, Alecia, and Bobbington; ButtaFly, Deb, and Wayne; Pam, Meredith, and Tim.

The next challenge is a photo shoot, just as in season 1.  This time, however, each member of the trio is to wear camouflage and replicate the famous picture taken by Hambone, Ralph, and Harvey prior to the hunting trip that was shown on Gone Barefoot during its second season.  Local photographer Ken Tart returns to the show to take their photos.  They are judged on body positioning, ability to replicate the shot, and overall personality.  The best trio will each get $50 credits at the family's online store, while the worst trio is subject to elimination.

As he is a hunter and fisherman, Adam naturally relishes the camo look, and in fact "coaches" the rest of the team in how to handle the shoot.  Brooke says she appreciates that, and hopes it helps them win.  On the other hand, ButtaFly finds the idea unappealing: "I'm a city girl and it doesn't look good on me."  What everyone needs is patience: it takes Ken Tart over three hours, and some 20 pictures per team, in getting the pictures he wants.  (It doesn't help that Tart's equipment malfunctions during the shoot.)

During the judging, Brandon McLamb impersonates fashion-show judge Nigel Barker with an over-the-top British accent that makes everybody laugh.  He later announces that "Team ABC" - Adam, Brooke, and Casey - have won the challenge and the credits.  According to McLamb, Adam was the driving force behind the win by coordinating all the team efforts and making everyone look good.

Of course, there are some rocky moments.  Bobbington complains the camo doesn't fit him; a producer responds that this is the biggest size they have and there's nothing he can do about it.  Alecia blunders the shot completely, then confesses that she missed the original episode.  ("She should go home just for that alone," Deb whispers.)  And Wayne is so nervous he throws up.

At panel, the Jason/Alecia/Bobbington photo and the ButtaFly/Deb/Wayne photo are considered the two worst.  After some argument, ButtaFly, Deb, and Wayne are saved.  Then comes the biggest bombshell of the season yet: This is a double-elimination challenge!  "The math just doesn't look good," Alecia says in an understatement.

Before announcing the decision, Brandon details the problems: the heights aren't proportional, the camo wasn't worn correctly, and Bobbington complained too loudly.  With that, the former college football player and police officer is eliminated.  "I'll watch it back, realize what a jerk I was, and learn from it to live better from now on," he says in confessional.  Then Alecia is sent home, removing the last link to the sports world from the competition.  "From now on, I'm paying more attention to everything, because you never know how it will be used, somehow."

Pictures, pictures everywhere

Here is more of my work during the ongoing Photoshop class.

I begin with two views of pageant contestant Brandy Barefoot.  She is back this year in the Miss Idealia pageant in Stone Mountain, GA, and to promote her entry in the contest, the family has put out both an official program and a full-scale poster measuring 16 by 20 feet.  The respective photographs are below.  For this photo montage, I put ex-Miss Benson Amanda Barefoot's face on top of an unidentified model, and used the brush tool and reduced opacity to match the hair color around the nape of the model's neck to match Amanda's blonde hair.

The next photo is of a fall-time tradition in many places across the United States.  Corn mazes can be found on many farms as a way for them to get extra revenue and attract tourists.  Here I depict the three children of Popeye and Annie - Ralph, Harvey, and Hambone - preparing to take on the maze at the home of the Raynors, who are the parents of Brenda.  The shirt and hat designs are alternate symbols for the family, as suggested by Annie.

The last photo has nothing to do with my second-favorite family, but it's a great moment in my real one.  On Wednesday, my brother Tommy Hobson and his wife, the former Lisa Colon, gave birth to Havana Faye at Memorial Medical Center in Long Beach, CA.  She weighed seven pounds, eleven ounces and measured 21 inches in length.  Mother and daughter are doing fine, and Lisa is expected to be discharged from Memorial on Sunday.  (I apologize for the poor quality; it came from a seven-year-old cell phone.)

BMN Superfan - episode 2, season 2

The contestants settle into their hotel rooms for their first full night.  The missing spot where Doug was is noted.

Shandi Finnessey greets them with news of the next challenge.  It has to do with one of the essential survival skills of traditional farming: gathering and delivering water.  The challenge will take place at William B. Umstead State Park near Raleigh-Durham International Airport.  Three team members will travel to a designated area along the shoreline of Park Lake to gather one bucket of water each.  The other three will transport it among a half-mile trail, using a cart drawn by mules, the symbol of the local area where the Barefoots live.  The first team to completely fill the 10-liter butt, or water barrel, wins the challenge.  The losing team will see one member go home.  Since the red-dot team has one extra member, Alecia decides to sit out; she thinks she has a strained muscle in her lower back.

The teams encounter tough going.  The buckets have a large size and must be carried uphill, while the mule trail is downhill and full of ruts.  As a result, teams repeatedly see much of their water spilled to the ground and they have to make a dozen trips each through the course.  In addition, Brooke bruises her knee while running, leaving the red team shorthanded.  After nearly three hours, the red team - overcoming Brooke's injury - defeates the blue, with Wayne making the final delivery.   (After the challenge ends, doctors check out both Brooke and Alecia; both have only minor injuries and can continue in the season.)

For the second straight week, the original blue-dot team faces elimination.  This time, the chorus for Pam to depart the game is louder, but again, the judges decide to go in a different direction.  They call out Jason and Bellamy as the bottom two.  Bellamy is cited for not keeping up with the rest of the retrieval group, and Jason is singled out for dropping too much liquid on the return. Brandon McLamb also notes that Jason seemed not to care after the team lost: "I can't believe someone who was so brave in battle in the army would show such non-chalance - if that's a word - in a simple little game like this."  Jason replies, "That is not true.  I don't want to see the team lose.  It's just that I want to be optimistic at all times."  Before the announcement, Brandon says, "I know I'll piss a lot of [viewers] off.  It's either the war veteran or the beauty queen.  So what do I do?"  Brandon then whispers, "It's gonna be hard, but give her the news anyway."  Shandi announces Bellamy's departure, after which Brandon says,  "This was the hardest decision to eliminate that this show has ever had.  Someone had to go home, and you were just the worst player in this game today."  At that point, Bellamy weeps openly and is comforted by the rest of the losing team, and then later by everyone else and even judge Brian Warner.  "This [decision] will not defeat me," Bellamy says in the post-show confessional.  "I trust I have a long life ahead of me and will learn from this experience always."

The possibilities are endless...

It has been four weeks since I resumed Photoshop class at ABC Adult School, but I keep finding ways to put my characters in all sorts of situations.  Two more examples are below.

In the first, which I completed just minutes ago, I made Belinda's dollhouse.  I began by taking a picture of a dollhouse off the Internet which was already fully assembled and included a girl model.  Belinda's face is superimposed above the original model, with cloning done to remove extra hair in the original model (the faces are on equal levels).  Then I used another photo to select four dolls that Belinda would own - Priscilla Peterpotterpiper, Sarah Michelle MacSmelliefoote, Benjamin Jeremiah Boogerberger, and Anna Maria McBonniebreath.  (Sarah and Benjamin are the married couple on the bed and Priscilla is partially obscured.)  I like dollhouses, as it allows young people - especially women - to have fun while acting out their takes on life.  Unfortunately, the art of dolls has been lost due to the proliferation of video games, organized sports, and other modern activities.

The second is a barn scene starring Bobby Ray, the animal trainer, and "redneck woman" Hambone.  I made a clever depiction of B.R. petting a mule and Hambone with her hands in pockets.  Hope you enjoy it!

BMN Superfan - episode 1, season 2

BMN Superfan is back!  It "premiered" on Sunday night with a new cast of 14 contestants:

• Casey Atwood, 33, Nashville, TN - Elementary school teacher, former NASCAR driver
• Bobbington Brandt, 48, Tulare, CA - Police officer, former college football player
• Adam Brister, 29, Canton, GA - Retail store manager, hunter, musician
• Pam Driscoll, 38, Concord, NC - Charity director
• Deb Holmes, 52, Chesapeake, VA - Medical dispatcher
• Brooke Liptrap, 32, Baltimore - Stay-at-home mom
• Meredith MacBills, 28, Corvallis, OR - Teacher/folk singer
• Tim Miller, 39, Delaware, OH - Insurance broker/hobby farmer
• Alecia A. Moore, 24, New York City - Sportscaster
• Doug Scherer, 47, Bloomington, IN - Post-graduate college student
• Wayne Vandenlangenberg, 37, Green Bay, WI - Former contestant on The Biggest Loser
• Kimberly "ButtaFly" Wimberly, 26, Atlanta - "Vocalese" (spoken word poetry) artist
• Bellamy Wood, 19, West Plains, MO - College student, former Miss Teen Missouri USA
• Jason Youngblood, 30, New Bern, NC - U.S. Marine veteran (corporal), recipient of the Bronze Star

Shandi Finnessey returns as host, welcomes all the contestants and reminds them of the prizes - $50,000 cash and $50,000 in charitable contributions, as with last season.  However, part of the grand prize is different:  The winner won't spend a week on the Barefoot farm - "I can't believe I'm not going to the farm.  After all, isn't that what I came for?" responds Deb - but will instead will go to Camp Paradise, the house owned by four Barefoot brothers who are distantly related to members of "the 13" and featured on the new BMN series, What the Buck, starring Hambone.  The package includes four days of outdoor activities and survivalist training, and a post-visit performance from Hambone and the brothers, who have formed a rock band.  "I spent a lot of time at hunting lodges, so I definitively want this prize.  I want to go!" exclaims Adam.

The first challenge is a scavenger hunt at Five Counties Stadium in Zebulon, NC, home of the minor-league baseball team the Carolina Mudcats.  There, producers have hidden 14 envelopes throughout the stadium.  Some are underneath the stands, some in a party suite beyond the left-field fence, and one is even in the home team clubhouse.  Once all 14 contestants have found the envelopes, they open them to uncover paper placards with colored dots.  Half of them have red dots, and the other half have blue dots.  The colors determine the teams for the next challenge:

Red dots = Casey, Bobbington, Deb, Brooke, Alecia, Wayne, ButtaFly

Blue dots = Adam, Pam, Meredith, Tim, Doug, Bellamy, Jason

Next, elimination is on the line, as the new teams are asked to create a new mascot for the farm.  (Finnessey explains that mascots are traditionally used as tangible representations for various companies and concepts, and also appeal to children and their families.)  Team members are given specific assignments.  Three members from each team are concept and design, two others market the creation at the ballpark during a Mudcats home game, and two others report back on the game-day experience to the judges.

The red-dot team settles on the bear and name him Blackie, as it's supposed to be an Appalachian black bear.  Alecia explains why: "It can be cute and cuddly, or aggressive and strong, depending on the situation.  It's one of the most recognizable wild animals in the Western world.  Finally, the first syllable rhymes with Barefoot!"

The blue-dot team picks an owl, which they name Barney.  Adam explains: "The owl is the traditional guardian of the farm, especially at night when the people sleep.  Barn owls also have vision better than that of humans, which represents the farsighted ambitions and focus of the Barefoot Family Farm."

Alecia and Casey are chosen to represent the red team's idea at the Mudcats' game, while Doug and Meredith do the same for the blue team.  Each team sets up a booth to explain their concepts and try to gain support from the fans.  Whoever gets the most votes wins the challenge, and everyone on that team is safe for the week.  From the losers, someone goes home.

Postgame, the presentation begins with the judging panel: Brandon McLamb, Brian Warner (director of Gone Barefoot), and guest judge, Erin Perry, who is the director of stadium operations for the Mudcats.   Doing the presentations are Deb and ButtaFly for the red-dot team and Pam and Bellamy of the blue-dot team.  After Deb introduces, ButtaFly raps about the bear creation and what happened at the game.  Brandon calls the presentation "incredible and innovative" and says she can sell anything.  As for the design, Erin thinks that some of the features can be modified to make it more realistic, to which the other judges quickly agree.  Pam and Bellamy tell a "children's story" about the owl and reveal a comic book tied in to the mascot.  Brandon doesn't like this presentation as much, but says that pairing Barney with a possible comic book is a good idea for getting the children hooked on it.

But what of the ballpark vote that would decide the challenge?  Shandi reveals that, with 56 percent of the vote, Blackie has won.

Now comes time for the first elimination.  Both the promotion and presentation teams were equally blamed for the loss by the judges - the promoters for not making more of a design the judges thought was better, and the presentation team for a weak backstory and overdependence on the comic book.  Therefore, all four of them were sent to the bottom.  While some teammates wanted Pam sent home as the biggest threat in the game going forward, Doug's bland delivery was such that Brandon successfully lobbied the other judges to send him home.  "Oh, well, I've lost early and often, just like my Cubs," he sighs.

(As for the Mudcats home game, it was a 6-3 loss to the Winston-Salem Dash in the Carolina League.)

Publicity photo for Hambone's "spinoff"

As I mentioned in my last post, I only worked on one Photoshop picture this week.  But it was an important one, as it sets the scene for my latest TV show creation involving the Barefoot family.

Reba Pearl "Hambone" is the star of What the Buck?  The caption describes what the show is all about, and introduces who else is on it.  However, a greater explanation is needed:

Hambone is the owner of Camp Paradise, located in Four Oaks, NC; the campsite is located about two miles from where she and the rest of "the 13" live.  Camp Paradise looks like any other summer camp, complete with bunk beds, counselors, and social activities.  But it has a specific, significant purpose.

Some years ago, the idea came to John C. "Bear" Barefoot, a third cousin of Buddy Wayne's, to start the camp.  Bear had learned that over 140 people are in the fifth through seventh generations of the Handy Barefoot descent.  Most of them were born in the last 30 years, which have seen tremendous advances in

communication and changes in pop culture.  He feared that traditional methods of living were being lost without being transmitted to future generations.  These include hunting, fishing, and general survival skills.

The camp debuted during the first season of Gone Barefoot; Bunky went there at the insistence of Buddy Wayne, who saw that he was slow to adapt to the simpler ways of life.  At the same time, Hambone was hired as one of the counselors, working for Bear and his three brothers - Boo Boo, Cooter, and Little Jack.  Her unusual ideas of how to run camp life caused huge battles with the founders.  The brothers backed down and turned over the entire camp to her this past winter.

What the Buck? - based on a cleaned-up common expression Ralph taught Hambone - "premiered" on Sep. 4.  It includes ideas of Heaven and the afterlife which are counter to what are commonly perceived, and instead fit Southern "redneck" stereotypes often seen in film and on TV.  Scenes include regular social drinking (mostly beer), mud bogging, and barbeques cooked over bonfires.  By far the most controversial scene had her jump into a water hole wearing only a bra and panties (while the brothers wore nothing but briefs).

Of course, Hambone's dumb jokes are a huge part of each episode and the opening theme is her body music.

Revised 'Sing for the World' page

I will share the only photograph I completed this week in the next post.  For now, I'll share something else I worked on during the week on my hard drive.

It is a revision of the page for the mythical singing competition song Sing for the World that I created here last year.  This new version contains specific information on competition rules and formats, when the live shows would have begun and ended, and what would have happened moving forward.  I also reduced the size of the world tour to a more manageable two months.  The new "tour" still covered 40 cities in 23 countries on six continents.

This was revised again on Jan. 18, 2014 to change the British singer's last name to one I liked better.  And besides, I'd used "butt" enough times already.:)  Then, just minutes later, I removed Boston from the tour and replaced it with Atlanta.

GENERAL
Sing for the World is a competition show co-created by Hollywood producer Joel Gallen and former European Broadcast Union executive Bjorn Rehnquist.  The EBU organizes the Eurovision Song Contest on which this is based.

In 2009, the show debuted with simultaneous TV programs in 38 countries and territories - Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Croatia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, India, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Puerto Rico, Russia, Serbia, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey, United Kingdom, and United States.

Each country has its own format and rules.  Here's how it worked in the U.S.:

FORMAT
In 2009, the competition began with open auditions in 10 U.S. cities: New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Nashville, Dallas, Denver, Miami, San Francisco, Washington, D.C. and Portland, Oregon.  The top four acts in each city advanced to the next round.  Both solo acts and groups were eligible; all participants had to be at least 13 years old (although one group member could be as young as 12).

From there, the 40 acts advanced to the next round, called the "chorus challenge."  Each act was limited to a 30-second performance, which in most cases was the chorus of a popular song.  After that, the three judges ("head coach" Matt Pinfield, Brian McKnight, and Colbie Caillat) picked the following 24 acts to move on to live shows at the Tribune Studios in Hollywood:

• Buddy Wayne Barefoot (country)
• Lauren Bendykowski (folk rock)
• betaBOOZEbrain (straight-edge punk)
• Bird & Fly (R&B duet)1
• Blinky Blink (rap/dance)
• Bubba Brister (blues/gospel)
• Terrell Hightower (reggae)
• Hootie & the Owls ("beach music")
• Bubbles Hernandez (Latin Mexican)
• Amber LaBelliard (Cajun)
• Melanie MacMelville (hard-edge pop)
• Malibu (boy band)
• Georgia Mae McGlory (gospel)
• Pinky McPipkin (rockabilly)
• Carly Pineda (opera)
• Brittany Raylene (bluegrass/country)2
• RBNL (doo-wop)
• The Real Blondie (pianist)
• Gaynell Robinson (country)
• Rockin' Robin and the Railbirds (all-female rock)
• Potter Stewart, Jr. (standards)
• Matthew Traylor (contemporary Christian)
• Ultimate Dreamz (tribute girls' group)
• Caryn Warner (rock guitar)

1Had qualified for the show as individuals Brightful Birdsong and Kimberly Wimberly.  Producers put them together as a duo.
2Changed name from Brittany Spears between audition and top-40 round

The acts that advanced went to live shows that aired on ABC, hosted by Shandi Finnessey.  The show debuted on May 25 with the top 40 named on the June 8 episode, the live shows beginning on June 15, and the live finale on Aug. 11.

Barefoot and 37 other national winners advanced to the World Finals at Yankee Stadium on Aug. 25, 27, and 30.  Fourteen acts competed in the semifinals on the first two dates, with the top seven moving on to the final on the last date to join Barefoot and five others who drew a bye.  Of course, Barefoot won the competition, with Hayley McBroom (Australia) second and Little Miss B (Germany) third.


POST-SHOW TOUR
After the world finals wrapped up, Barefoot received a world tour as part of the overall prize package.

• Sep. 17 Paris - Omnisports Bercy
• Sep. 19 London - The O2 Arena
• Sep. 20 Manchester - Manchester Arena
• Sep. 22 Stockholm - Ericsson Globe
• Sep. 24 Rotterdam - Ahoy Rotterdam
• Sep. 25 Hamburg - The O2 World
• Sep. 26 Berlin - The O2 World
• Sep. 28 Prague - The O2 Arena
• Sep. 29 Vienna - Sportpaleis
• Oct. 1 Milan - Mediolanum Forum
• Oct. 3 Istanbul - Sinam Erdan Dome
• Oct. 4 Tel Aviv - Nokia Arena
• Oct. 8 Johannesburg - Standard Bank Arena
• Oct. 11 Rio de Janeiro - HSBC Arena
• Oct. 13 Mexico City - Palacio de los Deportes
• Oct. 15 San Juan - Coliseo José Miguel Agrelot
• Oct. 17 Atlanta - Philips Arena
• Oct. 18 Washington, DC - Verizon Center
• Oct. 19 New York City - Madison Square Garden
• Oct. 21 Montreal - Bell Centre
• Oct. 22 Toronto - Air Canada Centre
• Oct. 23 Detroit - Joe Louis Arena
• Oct. 25 Chicago - United Center
• Oct. 26 Nashville - Bridgestone Arena
• Oct. 28 San Antonio - AT&T Center
• Oct. 29 Kansas City - Sprint Center
• Oct. 31 Denver - Pepsi Center
• Nov. 2 Las Vegas - MGM Grand Garden
• Nov. 3 Los Angeles - Staples Center
• Nov. 5 San Jose - HP Pavilion at San Jose1
• Nov. 7 Vancouver - General Motors Place2
• Nov. 12 Tokyo - Nippon Budokan
• Nov. 13 Seoul - Jamsil Arena
• Nov. 15 Shanghai - Mercedes-Benz Arena
• Nov. 16 Hong Kong - Asia-World Arena
• Nov. 18 Quezon City - Araneta Coliseum
• Nov. 19 Singapore - Singapore Indoor Arena
• Nov. 21 Sydney - Sydney Super Dome
• Nov. 22 Melbourne - Rod Laver Arena
• Dec. 5 Raleigh - RBC Center (Christmas charity concert)3

1Now known as SAP Center at San Jose
2Now known as Rogers Arena
3Now known as PNC Arena


SUBSEQUENT SEASONS
Blondie, who finished fourth in 2009, won the U.S. version of this show in 2011.  In May of that year, she traveled to Dubai for the SFTW World Final, but ended up in fifth place.  Little Miss B was the overall winner.

Bubba Brister's third try at SFTW paid off on Sep. 9, 2013, when he won the U.S. version at Tribune Studios in Hollywood.  Brister had less than a week to prepare for the world final, which took place on Sep. 17, 19, and 22 in Berlin at The O2 World.  He finished third, behind Dutch rock band Pinwheel (winner) and British singer Emily Blackborough (runner-up).  Blackborough was part of Shakespeare's Piper, which represented the U.K. in 2009.

Due to time constraints, only 20 acts were on the U.S. version in each year.  In 2011, the number of open auditions were cut to five, while in '13, all 20 were invited after failing to win past singing competitions (like SFTW, American Idol, and The Voice).