Hello my musical family, here I am on a Monday attempting to wrap things up as they say. I thought I could be done last night but my mind had other plans, hence why this is being posted right now. In any case, we had another amazing week with beautiful music yet again.

Without any more delays, here we go:

First Place.-

@nathankaye - Burning the Candle (original song)

If there is someone that wonders what "the trick" is to catch a judge's attention, here is a great example of "the trick"..... MAKE ME FEEL IT DARNIT!!!! Man... this performance might be Nathan's best imo since he entered the competition. The dramatic stop at the end leaves you handing for a second before he delivers the final blow.

Just hit play, don't just read this, don't kid yourself...

Second Place.-

@silentscreamer - to the Moon (Original Song)

@silentscreamer is to me one of the best examples of what it means to perform with passion. Its hard to listen to her hit those high notes and keep one's composure intact. This song was originally part of a project that never saw the light of day, however the song that came out of this project is as epic as it gets, and this song will resonate for years and years to come.

I feel like running a mile when I listen to it.... Not that it makes sense to even say that.

Third Place.-

@samcook - Love at war silver screen (original song)

I seriously loved every minute of this song. It has that familiar texture that I immediately identify with what I refer to as the golden years of rock music. The Peter Gabriel, Yes, and I even hear some Parson in there too. Of course that makes me automatically love it, because its right up my emotional grid of nostalgia.

The ethereal vocals add the perfect touch to the mix... just excellent guys, this was beautiful.

Fourth Place.-

@lillywilton - May it be (cover)

I think we just got confirmation the other day and what I'm about to say might shock a couple of you guys, but the truth must come out. Lilly is no who you think she is, she is a magical creature from a different planet that landed on ours to show us about the beauty of art.

The good news is that she comes in peace, the bad news is that she will melt your heart.

Fifth Place.-

@juanhobos - 12 horas (original song)

This performance blew my mind a little bit, after jamming to it three times in a row I'm wondering how in the hell is this not the music that plays on the radio. You might be trapped in the groove and miss completely the message. I would not blame you, but the song tip toes around darkness and attempts to grip to hope.

I say this and at the same tell you, that the music itself needs no translation.

Honorable Mentions

In no particular order, these are some of the performances I loved this week.... I'm super grateful for being someone who gets to listen to this talent.

@drewley - Lord of the ring Medley

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@steembirds - ONO (original comedy)

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@mahomonroy - Someone Like You (cover)

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@moccamonica - Ambar (original song)

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@lifetipsbysn - Down the road (original)

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Don't forget to checkout the official Steemit OpenMic judges picks from @passion-ground @krystle @soundlegion and @verbal-d. Winners selected and announced every Monday on @luzcypher's blog page.

Special Announcement

I would like to personally thank @ausbitbank, @curie and @aggroed for helping out our community. It's inspiring to see leadership taking the initiative to keep our beloved #openmic alive like this and its to me the biggest bullish indicator that we are on our way to a better, brighter tomorrow.

To our long time patron @pfunk once again, thank you for backing this project as you have for so long. I hope seeing the community rally behind the contest that we love so much made you proud. We have something very special here, and you've been key for it to be what it has become.

Long live the openmic!!!!

And that is it for me my friends, all done for week 87. I hope this coming week I will do a better job at delivering this post at a better time, but as they say, better late than never.

But hey friend, before you leave my post musical brother or musical sister, please know that despite the fact that we call this a competition, even though my post says first, second, third place, that is not what matters about the #openmic. In the end of the day the judges are just as human, as flawed and beautiful as everyone else on this planet. The ethos of this contest, of this community, is simply for us to have special place to share our passion for music, for us to laugh together, to cry together and explore emotions that everyday life seems to neglect in one way or another.

Every single one of you is valuable to me, so thank you for being part of my musical family...

Much love

Other posts by yours truly

_{• An open Letter to those who claim to care
• We can be so silly
• HitBTC fakenewsd me Bigtime
• Random Thoughts on Risk Taking - Read at your own risk
• our cat acting stoic}