- Title: USA: FIRST AIR GUITAR CHAMPIONSHIPS
- Date: 25th March 2004
- Summary: (U2) NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES (JUNE 6, 2003) (REUTERS) 1. EXTERIOR/ZOOM OUT: OF PUSSYCAT LOUNGE 0.05 2. VARIOUS: OF TWO CONTESTANTS PLAYING AIR GUITAR ( 2 SHOTS) 0.45 3. SCU: (SOUNDBITE) (English) KRIS RUCKER, "2003 USA AIR GUITAR CHAMPIONSHIP" PRODUCER SAYING: "It's ridiculous, it's fun, it's just entertaining. It's surreal. Wait until you see it. It's a trip." 0.56 4. VARIOUS: CONTESTANTS WAITING BACKSTAGE 1.03 5. SCU: (SOUNDBITE) (English) DAN CRANE "BJORN TOROQUE", AIR GUITARIST SAYING: "I wail, I get crazy, you know, and I tap into something that's, like, you know, old, from when I was a kid, you know. Everybody, I think, when they were kids used to stand on their bed and like, rock out, and that's what I do now, but I still have this youthful exuberance." 1.24 6. VARIOUS: CRANE PERFORMING ON STAGE 1.42 7. MLV: SHOT OF CONTESTANT LUCY "SNATCHFACE" HARRISON PLAYING AIR GUITAR BACKSTAGE 1.52 8. SCU: (SOUNDBITE) (English) LUCY "SNATCHFACE" HARRISON, AIR GUITARIST, SAYING: "We'll, I'm not very talented or very disciplined in any way. I'm sort of a slack, I just sit at home all day and, like, eat. So, I feel like this is the best way for me to show who I am and get some attention and some fame, maybe, without actually doing any work, or being, like, hot or having a boob job or anything." 2.13 9. VARIOUS: LUCY "SNATCHFACE" HARRISON PLAYING ON STAGE 2.32 10. DAVID JUNG "C-DIDDY" PLAYING AIR GUITAR ON STAGE 3.03 11. (SOUNDBITE) (English): DAVID JUNG "C-DIDDY", AIR GUITARIST, SAYING "That's a question you don't need to ask. I'll see you in the winner's circle, promptly. I'll see you in Finland next too. I have no question about it. I will demonstrate my inner supremacy in about one minute flat." 3.19 12. VARIOUS of CONTESTANT PERFORMING ON STAGE 13. "BJORNE TUROQUE" PERFORMING IN THE FINAL ROUND 3.46 14. JUDGES SHOWING PLACARDS WITH SCORE 3.48 15. CONTESTANT ONSTAGE DURING FINAL ROUND 3.55 16. JUDGES SHOWING SCORE 3.49 17. "C-DIDDY" PLAYING DURING FINAL ROUND 4.09 18. JUDGES SHOWING C-DIDDY'S WINNING SCORE 4.10 19. SOUNDBITE (English): DAVID JUNG "C-DIDDY", WINNER , SAYING: "I think I was able to find that stillness within so that when my Asian fury came out, it was legible. People could understand it, the audience could communicate it." 4.21 20. "BJORNE TUROQUE" AND "C-DIDDY" PERFORMING TOGETHER 4.41 Initials Script is copyright Reuters Limited. All rights reserved
- Embargoed: 9th April 2004 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: NEW YORK, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES
- City:
- Country: USA
- Reuters ID: LVA4FUZ6IJOTSWDLDB8H992XC6L0
- Story Text: New York City has held the first U.S. Air Guitar
Championships where some of the nation's best bedroom rock
stars had a shot at instant fame and a free trip to Finland to
compete in the Eighth Annual Air Guitar World Championships.
The competition kicked off with the East Coast
Regionals and will conclude with the U.S. Finals in Los
Angeles on June 28. The U.S. champion will then compete at
this summer's Air Guitar World Championships in Finland.
New York City's "Pussycat Lounge" was the place to be for
those who have found themselves many times playing guitar in
front of the mirror
"It's ridiculous, it's fun, it's just entertaining. It's
surreal. Wait until you see it. It's a trip," said producer
Kris Rucker who helped bring the contest to America after
attending last year's world championships.
The contest was promoted over the internet and
organizers have been shocked by the overwhelming response from
participants.
For contestants such as Dan Crane - stage name "Bjorn
Turoque" - it's all about fulfilling a childhood fantasy.
"I wail, I get crazy, you know, and I tap into something
that's, like, you know, old, from when I was a kid, you know.
Everybody, I think, when they were kids used to stand on their
bed and like, rock out, and that's what I do now, but I still
have this youthful exuberance," he told Reuters. He is a base
player for a French-language rock band called "The Sans
Culotte". He added that playing a real guitar or any other
instrument is no guarantee of success.
Lucy "Snatchface" Harrison, a receptionist at a
foot-fetish parlour, sees the contest as a door for the
artistically-challenged.
"We'll, I'm not very talented or very disciplined in any
way. I'm sort of a slack, I just sit at home all day and,
like, eat. So, I feel like this is the best way for me to show
who I am and get some attention and some fame, maybe, without
actually doing any work, or being, like, hot or having a boob
job or anything," she said.
Contestants come from all walks of life, from real
musicians to businessmen, many with the confidence of a
bona-fide celebrity.
"That's a question you don't need to ask. I'll see you in
the winner's circle, promptly. I'll see you in Finland next
too. I have no question about it. I will demonstrate my inner
supremacy in about one minute flat," said David Jung - stage
name "C-Diddy", who was one of the top contenders.
The competition was divided into two rounds. During the
first round contestants were free to perform to the music of
their choice. Five finalists were then picked by a panel of
rock experts and air guitar veterans. The final five then
performed to a "secret" song selected by the judges. The
contestants were then judged on a scale from 4.0 to 6.0,
according to the conventions of international figure skating.
"Bjorne Turoque" and "C-Diddy" won second and first
place respectively. "I think I was able to find that
stillness within so that when my Asian fury came out, it was
legible. People could understand it, the audience could
communicate it," said champion, David Jung (C-Diddy). His next
step will be a trip to Los Angeles for the West Coast
Regionals and US Finals on June 28, and then, perhaps the
once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to represent America's air
guitar hopes on the world stage.
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