Ramstein AB, Germany – Hundreds of supporters, 33 auditions, 15 contestants and 4 rounds of competition all boiled down to 1 Grand Finale on Saturday, 4 May 2019 inside Club E. For the past 6 weeks, The Ramstein Enlisted Club has been hosting the Second Annual Ramstein Starz. The competition gained more and more traction throughout the weeks, filling the Ramstein Club ‘E each Saturday night; the seats were all taken, the drinks were flowing, and the entertainment was incredible.
Ramstein Starz has been the platform for highlighting talent within the Kaiserslautern Military Community. Active duty, civilian employees, and spouses came together every week to compete for a $1000 top prize that included 10 hours of studio time from Universe Vibration Studios of Kaiserslautern. More importantly, contestants saw each other as more than the competition, but friends, cheering each other on during performances, laughing together, and even attending shows after being voted off.
The support shown from family and friends was just as eminent throughout the competition, week after week there were more signs glowing with lights, flowers, and crowds of supporters at each competition round. The overwhelming support within Club ‘E was just as loud with family members cheering stateside via social media as loved ones eagerly awaited for pictures and videos throughout the past weeks.
The four Ramstein Starz judges gave each contestant throughout the competition constructive criticism and advice. Those who took the judges advice made each round more difficult when deciding who would get voted off. As a final twist, despite being eliminated, each contestant had the opportunity to return at the final event and performing during the ‘Wild Card’ round where the audience decided who would come back as the fourth finalist. After much deliberation, the audience voted Watoma Taylor back into the competition with a massive round of applause.
With Watoma back in the competition, the three other finalists, Justice Jaegar, Lonnie ‘Lyrics’ Dixon, and Odette Dothager made the crowd go wild with each performance as they left it all on the stage. It was a night filled with outfit changes, entertainment from ‘The Spicy Boys’, and incredible talent making this all a night to remember.
In the end, there could only be one Ramstein Starz winner, so after all the songs were sung, the final four gathered on stage for the moment they had waited weeks for. The results are in…fourth place went to our ‘Wild Card’ Watoma Taylor, who also received a $100 FSS gift card. Third place went to Justice Jaegar, who took home a karaoke machine. The second place winner was Odette Dothager, who won a trip to Edelweiss Resort. This means the winner of Ramstein Starz 2019 is Lonnie ‘Lyrics’ Dixon! Taking home with him the $1000 grand prize along with 10 hours of studio time at Universe Vibration Studio.
From the entire 86th Force Support Squadron, we would like to thank all of the 2019 Ramstein Starz contestants. Congratulations to our winner Lonnie ‘Lyrics’ Dixon! Special thank you to the entire team at the Ramstein Enlisted Club; who went above and beyond to make each competition better than the last, our hosts ‘The Spicy Boys’ from AFN; who gave the competition an extra dose of ‘spice’, and to all the judges; whom throughout the weeks worked to make each contestant a better performer. We look forward to seeing more of the amazing talent in the Kaiserslautern Military Community next year at Ramstein Starz 2020!