Elvis Fans ‘All Shook Up’ At Mesquite Contest

By ABIGAIL SNOW

Moapa Valley Progress

Enthusiastic Elvis Tribute Artist (ETA) fans were ‘all shook up’ Friday and Saturday during the annual “Elvis Rocks Mesquite” event at the CasaBlanca watching some of the world’s best ETAs compete for titles and cash prizes totaling $10,000.

The grand champion title of Elvis Rocks Mesquite, winning a $3000 prize, was Robert Washington. Washington is known as one of the world’s best ETA’s.

Second place and winner of $2000 went to Jacob Roman. Third place and $1500 went to Jim Westover. Fourth place and $1000 went to Tony E. Sub category prizes were: The 50’s Era and $250- Trent Carlini; the 60’s Era and $250- Robert Washington; the 70’s Era and $250- Robert Washington; and the Fan’s Favorite and $250- Jacob Roman.
“The audience loves their favorite ETA’s,” explained Director of Entertainment at Mesquite Gaming, Krissy Ayon. “They love cheering for and supporting them just like any sporting event really! They also love hearing all the great Elvis hits performed live in the same spirit they were originally performed in as best possible, without having the King himself there.”

Three preliminary rounds were held representing three eras with the ‘Best of the 50’s,’ and the ‘Best of the 60’s’ on Friday. On Saturday, the ‘Best of the 70’s’ was held followed by the final competition that evening.

The top four from each era moved on to the final competition, creating a total of 12 finalists.
Ayon, who is also the director of the Elvis Rocks Mesquite event, said the event was originally co-produced by an outside promoter for the first five years at the CasaBlanca. After that it was passed over to Mesquite Gaming. Ayon said that she has tried to maintain the foundation of the initial contest while keeping it fun and competitive.
“Our contest is unique in that we have made sure we listen to the feedback of our audience and ETA’s, and then create an event that everyone can walk away already excited to return next year,” explained Ayon. “I added the live band feature three years ago which really brought the level of the contest up a couple of levels for not only audience experience, but for the ETA’s. Contestants now have to perform their two songs with a live band in which they just met, and are only allotted a quick 20- minute rehearsal which is a challenge even for the well-seasoned professionals.”

Will Humbarger, of Queen Valley, Arizona, has been an ETA for about eight years. This was his third year at the Elvis Rocks Mesquite event. He competed in the final competition.
“It is my wife’s fault I got involved in competing in ETA events,” explained Humbarger. “I have always had the Elvis look with the long hair and sideburns and have always loved his music. We used to live next door to a bar in Arizona, and went to Happy Hour one night and told them I could do an Elvis impersonation. After that I started performing there regularly. I started competing about five years ago with my first competition being at an ETA Expo in Yuma Arizona. I represent the 70’s era because I liked Elvis better in that era. Don’t get me wrong, I like Elvis through his whole career, but I liked his songs, the outfits and concerts a little more in the 70’s.”

The final competition was hosted by Kelly Clinton-Holmes. Each of the 12 finalists performed two songs along with the band “Suspicious Minds” from California. They were judged in four categories including appearance, stage presence, overall performance, and vocals which counted double in points.

The ages of the contestants ranged from ETAs in their 20s all the way up to a local Mequite resident, Claude “Doc Elvis” Nielsen, who is 82 years old.
“I seek out judges who are considered professionals or experts in some aspect of the contest such as live performance,” said Ayon.

This year’s judges were Corrie Sachs, Stever Beyer and John Brooks. Sachs is a professional singer and performer, as well as the Las Vegas Entertainer of the Year for every year from 2004 and on. Beyer is the owner and president of Steve Beyer Productions a top talent agency and production company in Las Vegas. Brooks has been the CasaBlanca’s own Elvis Tribute Artist for the past 3 1/2 years and has won several competitions around the US.
“This was a good contest and there was a lot of talent,” mentioned contestant Humbarger. “I want to thank Krissy and the CasaBlanca for having this event. It is actually one of the more fun contests because we get to do a copycat show afterwards, and we all have a great time together like being at a family reunion.”