Like father, like daughter: Wilbraham residents win Valley Voice

Nov. 13, 2019 | Sarah Heinonen
sarah@thereminder.com

Jared Duff and his daughter Natalie Duff both won different divisions in the recent Valley Voice competiton.
Reminder Publishing submitted photo

WILBRAHAM – A father and daughter – Jared and Natalie Duff from Wilbraham – recently showed off their singing chops when they won the first annual Valley Voice contest at the Ja’Duke Center for the Performing Arts in Turners Falls on Oct. 19.

Natalie, who sings and dances at church, wanted to compete in the kids category of the vocal competition after hearing about it from family friends at Ja’Duke. Jared said he was not intending to sing, but decided to participate after his wife entered him into the adult division.

Natalie chose to sing “Rise Up” by Andra Day for the first round of the competition. She placed second out of 17 contestants. The second round took place the next weekend, and Natalie’s rendition of “Fight Song” by Rachel Platten won her the top spot.

When asked if she thought she would win, Natalie, a fourth-grader at Pioneer Valley Christian Academy in Springfield, said, “Not a chance,” because she was the youngest competitor in the kids’ division.

The winners were determined by popular vote. Jared said the audience voted for who they thought should have been the first, second, and third place winners. He said some parents later confided in him that they had voted for Natalie for first place over their own child.

Jared performed Ed Sheeran's “Perfect” in the first round and placed first. For the second round, he won with “You are the Reason” by Calum Scott.

For winning the adult category, Jared won $1,000, and Natalie won $500 for the kids’ division. Each of them also gets an hour of recording time at the Ja’Duke Theater.

“Valley Voice was a huge success and an incredible experience for the singers, audience, and community. Having been our first year of the competition, we were overjoyed with the amount of talent and participation the event received. We are excited to make this an annual event and hope to see more and more talent participate each year,” said Kimberly Williams, owner and director of the Ja’Duke Center for the Performing Arts.

Jared, who has been singing since he was a kid, was formerly a member of Zamia, a local band that put out an album.

“When I started [in the band] I only had one kid,” Jared said. As his family grew, he said, “I didn't have the time. Life happens.” Jared now has four children and said they are all musically inclined.

“I think, in general, music communicates more than words can. It just has this spiritual thing to it that can change your mood instantly. As a singer, the whole goal is evoking an emotion,” Jared said. Music is also important to Natalie.

“I just feel like the music just, whenever I play Christian music, it just calms me down,” she said.

Will the Duffs be competing next year?

“I won’t,” Jared said.

“I will,” Natalie said, which got a laugh from her dad.

Jared said he would like to see other people give the competition a try. Natalie agreed.

“I think everybody should at least have a chance to do it,” Natalie said of singing in the competition. “Trust me they're going to feel scared,” but she added, quoting the sign that hangs above her bed, “Lead, don't follow.”

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