Final 3 "Face Off" Families Face Off

"Early Show" Competition Reaches Semifinals As Oswalds, Peays, "J4" Meet

(CBS)  It's down to three -- family bands, that is, still standing in The Early Show's "Singing Family Face Off" competition -- and all three went at it on the show Wednesday, performing in the hope of attracting the most votes from viewers.

The remaining contenders - the Oswald Brothers, the Peays, and "J4," sang their hearts out.

Viewer voting for this round ends quickly -- Thursday, March 19 at 6 p.m. Eastern time.

CAST YOUR VOTE FOR YOUR FAVORITE BY clicking here!

The top two vote-getters from Wednesday's semifinals will be announced Friday, and move on to next Wedneaday's finals.

The songs the semifinalists did:

Oswald Brothers: "Back Where You Belong" (38 Special)



J4: "Come From The Heart" (Kathy Mattea)



Peay Family: "What's Going On" (Marvin Gaye)



The Oswalds, from Duluth, Ga., outside Atlanta, consist of Zach, 17, the lead singer, who does most of the writing and plays guitar, Jacob Oswald, 15, who plays lead guitar, and Nick Oswald, 15, rounding out the group, on drums.

The Peays Band is made up of four brothers from Greensboro, N.C. Taimine, Katif, Majid and Solomon Peay often sing a cappella, with their mom, Joyce Peay, behind them all the way. Whether in church or at local 4-H gatherings, the Peay brothers have sung, together and often, most of their lives. Joyce acts as their manager. Their father passed away when they were younger, but remains a big influence in their music.

Four siblings from the Smith family, from rural Bluff City, Tenn., ages 7 to 15, are "J4." The oldest two have played for a couple of years for services at the church across the street from their home, where their dad, Mark, is pastor. What does "J4" mean? Simple: Jessi, 15, plays guitar and violin and sings; Jedidiah (also known as Jeddi), 13, plays drums and piano; Josiah, 8, plays violin and guitar and sings backup; and Josephine, 7, plays keyboard.

[mzkittye]

I have enjoyed the bands, but the only thing that I see wrong with the contest is I don't believe that children should be in the same competition with adults. A lot of people will overlook the talents of adults to vote for the cuteness of children. I've seen that happen over and over again and it's not fair.

All of the bands were good, I just hope it's judged fairly !!!

[candycane09]

I certainly hope that all of you nay-sayers are not related to these families. I would be ashamed and embarrassed. It would be wonderful if there was a way for only positive comments and support. Because I have no life, I watched the over 200 videos that were entered in this contest. I have spent over 40 years in musical theatre, dance, and performing arts. Not all of my ?favorites? made it into the finals, but it is time to support them. It is a contest. People vote however they can. Looking at their orginal videos, some of these groups had huge followings. Some didn?t enter until closer to deadline and perhaps didn?t have the time to log lots of ?viewings.? However, those videos were probably, for the most part, viewed by friends and followers. Some groups have their own websites. Now, with the ?live? telecast they are seen by many more people. Take a close look. These families are auditioning. Auditions are tough. Can you do it? Can you play a new instrument in a week or a few days? Can you sing a song you do not know and have never heard of before in a couple days? I?ve seen accomplished actors and singers totally flub an audition and these families are amateurs.
And - it is CBS?s contest. They can run it however they decide. Not totally following the original rules or statements made, but they set the rules so they can go with whatever they want. Isn?t it a coincidence that there were two teen (basically) bands, two groups of four harmonizing, and two groups with all under the age of 15? However, the concept of singing families has been great.
It?s been fun to watch. I wish CBS would take time to interview the 80?s Rock and Roll family. I love the families that obviously did this ?just for fun.? Like the Yee family singing to new baby sister and big sister?s spontaneous choreography. I love all the great harmonies and the fact that they are spending time together. Look at the statistics for these final families. Three are home schooled, fourth has two parents teaching in their high school- choir and theater (same as home schooled!), fifth has parent teaching at the high school where the kids attend and he?s singing with them, and the sixth obviously has a mother that has done a great job raising her boys. ?We Are Family?

Please bring class and total appreciation for what these families are doing up a level. They all deserve it. So they are off pitch a bit, so they didn?t smile or make eye contact, so they can?t play five instruments. They are on national television, sometimes first place is not in the end the best or the best place to be (look at American Idol), sometimes we all just need to sit back and enjoy and let them do their thing and not make them feel cheated or bad about ?how they placed.?

If you are an expert perhaps you need to contact CBS about being a judge for their next contest. Now that was being critical on my part!!

God Bless all 200+ families for sharing. Peace and fulfillment be with these final six.

[bme2]

Enough of this nonsense!! Everyone is here because someone saw talent and potential in each group. The top 20 had talent then they were narrowed down to the 6 they felt had more potential. ALL 6 finalists have talent or they wouldn't have been there. From there it was up to the audience to decide and they have spoken so just deal with it. Everyone DID have the same voting opportunity. It doesn't mean that the other family was not as good or lacked something, basically the audience liked these 3 better and I must agree with the decision. Although each family that was eliminated I also liked certain things about them too but there can only be one winner, that is how the game is played. They all have their own unique talents and I hope everyone including those eliminated either from the top 20 or top 6 and even throughout the end are proud of themselves because it was truely an accomplishment. Anyway, just lay off the insults and enjoy watching these families living out their dream and stop whining.

[teristevens]

Felt like I had to jump in here. I hope the Oswalds get through but I did have something to say about music. To play an instrument is difficult you are right. Not sure if you were insinuating that the Grits girls could not play? So if you were, please look again at their audition tape and their cbs bio tape. The guitar leads and bass skills are far beyond the level that J4 shows. It shows a skill level beyond open chords and single notes on a piano. I also have deep roots in the industry with a brother in law that tours the world. You are sadly mistaken about voice. A person can practice all their lives and never get an amazing tone. They can learn to stay on pitch and learn to increase their range. However tone is unique to a person, like fingerprints and you cannot change that. If so there would be a million Christina Aguilara/Beyonce /Mariah Carey's/ Aretha Franklins in the world. Very naive to think that if you practice enough you can get that. Your are right about one thing. Either you have it or you do not. Tone is unique to a person and not something you can manufacture. I think you just insulted most professional singers out there.

[califriend]

I have to agree with Cougarmike, the GRITS Band should still be in the running. The little girls voice was sensational but that is obviously not the point of this contest. Those kids were very mature and would definately be ready for a recording contract. But if you want to go by looks, I like the Oswald brothers, J4 is cute but you can find that anywhere and the Peays well groomed and professional. Good luck to all.

[musicmngr]

I think CBS does care who wins the contest. I think it would make them look bad if for a singing competition a group that has a singer who sounds like J4's singer wins the contest. By the way, I wrote CBS about getting error messages when voting too.

[Shipley2dar]

Wishes for the BEST OF THE GROUPS, I know if you know anything about Music you cannot just pick an instrument and play Yes singing comes from talent too, however the more you do it the better you get. The way I look at it either you got it or not. When you are gifted you have a better chance of following through with it all of your life. I have been singing since the age of 17 and recorded once. Always wanted to make it big but it just never happened for me. My prayer J4 gets that opportunity at such a young age and they give all they have to be a witness for their creator! My Vote goes to J4:-)

[mercer1105]

Oswald brothers rock!

[redsuperbird]

All of you people need to realize that CBS really doesn't care who wins the contest. All of the contestants were there because CBS thinks any of them can be a successful act. It makes for good television to have a contest so everyone tunes in each week. Think about . With some help any one of these bands has enough talent to be groomed into something bigger and better then where they are now. So, quit being so critical and vote for who you like.

[loving2sing2]

Hey Volfanatic
I do not think cougarmike is inserting political innuendo into a fun competition. I think he is stating the facts. The way that voting is set up you can see that there can be 100 people voting 1000 times and 100,000 people voting once and get the same result. Most people cannot just sit in front of a computer all day. So, if you broke down the unique voters from the voters who sat in front of a computer all day, I am sure you would be proven wrong. Anyone in their right mind can tell even in the audition video, that the Sledge Grits Band is stronger. Vocally and musically they are stronger. The video that CBS put together at their home towns is another example of that. The judges comments were not inappropriate. They were what many people were thinking. Think about it, the groups in round 1 and 2 and their fans had the opportunity to vote against the stronger group in the 3rd round also. Who would want to go against The Sledge Grits Band in the finals. I just went to the initial site that the groups uploaded audition videos on. Even there you can see that J4 was not a favorite. Do not let the numbers fool you. I hope that the Oswald's get through to the next round. But, I guess it all depends on who can get the most people to sit all day in front of a computer. Not who is the stronger group. I think a record company would want a group with the most fans, not a group with a hundred fanatics. JMHO

PS-This may sound harsh. But, these groups are entering a competition where they will be judged and criticized.They are entering a world that is all about who is the best. It is not being mean or inappropriate, its about someone not being afraid to tell the truth.