Magnolia State Showdowns Take Over Another Weekend of Southern Show Choir

By Tony Holeman, Southern contributor

This weekend features two big competitions in the Magnolia state with groups hailing from four different states, so despite the lower number of competitions, there’ll be no shortage of excitement in the Southern show choir circuit. After a couple of weeks where the weekend's premier contest was in Alabama, all of the storylines will head to Mississippi.

Jackson Prep Show Choir Masters 

One of the biggest competitions in the Southern circuit this season (and arguably the biggest competition in Mississippi this year) is at the Jackson Prep Masters, where Clinton will be visiting immediately after having lost their first caption in over half a decade. It won’t be any easier here, though, as they’ll have to be ready to fend off a Brandon who will be looking to bounce back from a 4RU placement at Chesterton and a Tupelo who is still coming off a sweep versus Grenada. Expect Clinton to do Clinton-esque things, but looking at all the different environments being brought together at this competition is very eye-opening. This competition will also have potential wild cards at play to fill out the 4A division in Madison Central and Northwest Rankin and the lone 3A competitor in Northeast Jones.

Despite the 3A and 2A divisions being non-competitive (Rosa Scott in 2A), the 1A tier also offers an interesting matchup between the likes of Clinton Christian Academy, Pisgah, and Oxford, with Morton looking to play spoiler for a top-three spot. The single-gender division, aside from heavy favorite Tupelo, looks to be a bout between the womens groups of Brandon and Northwest Rankin, with the latter’s mens group on the outside looking in. Masters will be this author's first competition of the season, as if Prep was short on interesting storylines.

Jackson Prep Show Choir Masters Predictions (Five finalists)

Predictions represent the opinion of this contributor and not of HomeRoom Show Choir.

GC) Clinton “Attache” (Sweep)

1RU) Brandon “Brio”

2RU) Tupelo “Synergy”

3RU) Madison Central “Reveille”

4RU) Northeast Jones “Gold Horizons”

1^st in 4A) Clinton “Attache”

Only Group in 3A) Northeast Jones “Gold Horizons”

Only Group in 2A) Rosa Scott “Radiance”

1^st in 1A) Oxford “Sound”

1^st in Single Gender) Tupelo “Synergy”

Petal Show Choir Invitational

A marquee matchup awaits here at this competition, where there is a Homewood versus Avon showdown. Homewood has had two weeks to prepare, still coming off of an upset loss against West Jones (where they also lost the coveted Best Vocals caption). Avon, despite having just won a Grand Championship title, still is feeling the sting of a close loss against North Central two weeks ago, while they still managed a 1RU placement with the Best Choreography caption. With both these factors in play, these two groups will be looking to claim a heavily valued Grand Champion title against the other to really bolster their season. Spain Park will also be looking to play spoiler in this division, with Jackson Academy rounding out the 4A division.

The 3A division looks to be a close fight between the likes of Enterprise, Biloxi, and Oak Grove. The 2A division looks similar, with the competing groups instead being South Jones, Sumrall, and Pearl River Central. The 1A division, however, holds a lot more competition. Despite West Marion still being the favorites, they’ll be going against five other groups, including close competitor Pass Christian and the visiting(and debuting) Tarpon Springs. The single-gender groups looks similar to the 1A division, with Avon’s womens group seeming to be the favorites despite a contested six-group division.

Petal Show Choir Invitational Predictions (Five finalists)

Predictions represent the opinion of this contributor and not of HomeRoom Show Choir.

GC) Homewood “The Network” (Sweep)

1RU) Avon “Accents”

2RU) Spain Park “Rhapsody In Blue”

3RU) Avon “Attraction”

4RU) Biloxi “Sound Surge”

1^st in 4A) Homewood “The Network”

1^st in 3A) Biloxi “Sound Surge”

1^st in 2A) South Jones “Company”

1^st in 1A) West Marion “New Era"

1^st in Single-Gender) Avon “Attraction”

Travelers

Swapping places with Brandon from last weekend, Oak Mountain might cross paths with Avon on their way up to Indiana this Saturday. Both their mixed and womens groups will be competing against the likes of North Central, Franklin Central, and Fishers at the Center Grove Best of the Midwest competition. It is a competition without finals or overall placements, so both choirs will compete purely for placements within their division.