Music
The best kept secret in music
Press
BY RICH SCHAPIRO
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
As a 4-year-old, Brenda Radney sang songs from "Annie" on her grandma's porch in Staten Island, dazzling her relatives with her musical talent.
And Jillian Gaudious was only 6 when she leaned into her father's ear while watching a performance of "The Sound of Music" and whispered, "I want to be up there."
The two have come a long, long way.
Radney, now 22, and Gaudious, who is 25 and lives in Jersey City, are among the five finalists competing for the chance to perform at the Grammy Awards with pop king Justin Timberlake.
"That would be the 'it' moment for me," said Radney, of Grymes Hill.
The talented vocalists have already beat out thousands of other aspiring stars in the "My Grammy Moment" competition.
They each submitted a homemade video in which they sang a 60-second song a cappella. When a panel of judges winnowed the candidates down to 12, both made the cut.
Their videos were then posted on the Web at Yahoo! Music, and received enough votes from the public to catapult them into the final five.
Over the next several weeks, fans will continue to vote for their favorite singer, until three finalists are announced during Super Bowl weekend.
The three winners will all go to Los Angeles, where they'll each rehearse with Timberlake. The winner will be announced live during the Grammys Feb. 11 moments before she performs.
"Winning would be a dream come true," Gaudious said. "I've always had stars in my eyes." - The Daily News
Discography
"Work that Beat" - MTV's Dancelife
"Bootedo"- Showtime's Weeds Season1
"Pony Girl"- AOL Radio
Photos
Feeling a bit camera shy
Bio
Jillian
Beautiful, sexy, with a voice that bridges the classic soul of Etta James and Aretha Franklin with today's Hip Hop and R&B, this young singer, songwriter is poised to bring her unique sound to the masses.
Jillian has been singing and dancing since age 4. Her exceptional vocal ability has lead her to performing the National Anthem at the NY Knicks Home Opening Game and the NIT Tournament at Madison Square Garden.
Jillian's breakthrough came when she bested 2500 other contestants, winning the 2003 NY Idol Contest for 95.5, WPLJ. Jillian took first place singing her rendition of Etta James - "At Last". This lead to a three song demo deal with Hollywood Records and a production deal with New York artist/producers Ming+FS.
She has currently been working with legendary producers, The Dream Team ( LL Cool J, Run-DMC, Diddy, Loon, Nas, Baby(of The Cash Money Millionaires), Naughty By Nature, Az, Foxy Brown, Ali Vegas, D.J. Kay Slay, Fat Joe, Joe Budden, K-Ci, Dru Hill, Dave Hollister, Joe, Amerie, India Arie, Super Cat, and Stephanie Mills,) and writer/artist Torrey Carter.
Most recently Jillian entered the "My Grammy Moment" Competition held by Justin Timberlake, Yahoo!, CBS, and the Grammys in which she beat out 3000 hopefuls, this time from all over the United States.
As one of the "Top 5" finalists she was flown out to LA to meet Justin and the press. She has gotten coverage on CBS News, The Morning Show, The Insider, Entertainment Tonight, Access Hollywood, MTV, E! News, The Ellen Degeneris Show, People Magazine, Teen People, Z100, KTU, 94.3 The Point, 95.5 WPLJ's Scott and Todd in the Morning Show, The New York Post, NY Daily News, USA Today, The Star Ledger...
With beauty, talent and a voice for the ages, Jillian is ready the be the new sound of soul.
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