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Love you all!
Ash

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Last night, the Eisner and Lubin Auditorium was filled with Asian American pride and talent in honor of the Asian Cultural Union’s 40th anniversary.

The event, popularly known as Asian American Idol, attracted more than 100 attendees. This year’s organizers opted for a more polished and performance-driven event, instead of the usual on-the-spot, karaoke-style performances that took place in prior years.

Contestants auditioned on Monday and were notified on Tuesday if they would get the chance to compete among the final eight contestants.

“We decided that we wanted to turn AAI into a bigger event this year and the highlight of the celebration of our 40-year anniversary,” CAS junior and ACU co-president Sidrah Syed said. “There was no better way to do that than to turn it into a fully fledged show requiring auditions in order to participate.”

This year’s judges included Nickelodeon actress and College of Nursing freshman Ashley Argota, Tisch vocal instructor Carolyn Paulus and NYU President John Sexton.

“NYU students are amazingly talented,” Sexton said. “I see it all the time in class, but to see them performing just because they’re passionate about it is very special.”

A group of ACU freshmen kicked off the show with a performance of Nicki Minaj’s “Super Bass.”

The competition continued with a performance by the 2010 AAI winner, Gallatin junior Justin Kim. He performed a mashup of “Wedding Dress” by Taeyang, “Grenade” by Bruno Mars and “Fall for You” by Secondhand Serenade, which Paulus praised for its “change in tempo” and Kim’s “emotional attachment to the song.”

“I first sang for a crowd at Asian American Idol last year, and through this event I was able to find a new passion in singing for people,” Kim said.

Steinhardt sophomore Veronica Choi ended the show with her rendition of “Gravity” by Sara Bareilles, and Argota praised the quality of her voice.

Guest performers included the Synchronic Dance Crew, NYU VoCollision and a surprise act by Argota herself, who performed Adele’s “Someone Like You.”

After finalizing the decisions, the judges announced the winners of the competition — Veronica Choi won first place, Justin Kim earned second and Milton Koh earned third.

All three walked away with gift cards to various stores, including Superdry, H&M, Uniqlo and Max Brenner’s.

Steinhardt sophomore Travis Tan said he enjoyed each of the performances immensely.
“I thought the event showcased the talent of the Asian community at NYU in a different way,” Tan said.