{"id":16445,"date":"2024-12-11T14:26:21","date_gmt":"2024-12-11T21:26:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lbccviking.com\/?p=16445"},"modified":"2024-12-11T14:26:24","modified_gmt":"2024-12-11T21:26:24","slug":"from-american-idol-back-to-school-student-makes-music-through-adversity","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lbccviking.com\/?p=16445","title":{"rendered":"From American Idol back to school: Student makes music through adversity\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Once performing on the television series American Idol, Long Beach City College student Marcio Donaldson combines business and music to succeed despite the challenges that have come his way. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been trying out for the show since I was 16, but I didn\u2019t get on the show until I was 28. So 12 years straight I tried out,\u201d Donaldson said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

American Idol does not allow contestants over the age of 28 to compete on the show.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Donaldson had previously been on American Idol for season 15 but did not make it very far, however that didn\u2019t stop him from auditioning for what was going to be his last opportunity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a child, Donaldson oscillated between Norwalk and Compton. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

During that time, his mother was unable to care for him, so Donaldson was placed in his father\u2019s care until reunification was possible. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to his mother, Theresa Payne, Donaldson always had a talent for singing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI mean I had to recognize it, he was about one year old hitting high notes,\u201d Payne said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The career didn\u2019t feel right, so he took a break from school. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI opted out of college when I was 23. I did everything financially on my own and I was a server at the Cheesecake Factory. I paid for music videos out of my own pocket and played shows,\u201d Donaldson said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then, Donaldson\u2019s sister had a baby boy named Rashad that she was unable to care for due to drug addiction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Donaldson’s sister has been on drugs since she was 21, so he became the caregiver to Rashad, who he calls his \u201cnephew-son\u201d. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cShe brought this baby to me and I was at a loss for words, he really pushed me,\u201d Donaldson said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When his sister brought Rashad to Donaldson, he felt a sense of responsibility for the newborn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI had to speak up for this child, I need to feed him and the only thing I could do was sing,\u201d Donaldson said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

American Idol does not allow contestants over the age of 28 to compete on the show, so this would be his last chance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAmerican Idol was holding open calls via the internet (for season 16), so I sent in my audition tape. At the time (6-month-old Rashad) was crying and he would not be quiet unless I was singing to him,\u201d Donaldson said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The audition process was lengthy and included a four-month waiting time according to Donaldson. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

During that time, he took the opportunity to travel to Austin, Texas for an open audition to increase his chances. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI called up my mom one night and asked her if she could watch Rashad while I try because there\u2019s something I know I need to do as an entertainer,\u201d Donaldson said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Donaldson\u2019s mother continued to support him from home.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI just wanted everything to go well for him,\u201d Payne said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

After a 17 hour layover in Colorado, Donaldson made it to the open audition and was rejected.
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey looked at me and said, \u2018We just aren\u2019t feeling it and you\u2019re not what we\u2019re looking for,\u2019\u201d Donaldson said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As Donaldson came home feeling defeated, he heard his phone buzz.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

His online audition from four months prior had been accepted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe email said, \u2018We know who you are, we\u2019ve seen you over the years auditioning, you\u2019re going straight to the judges,\u201d Donaldson said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Donaldson took his nephew-son Rashad to his audition, and from that moment on he was featured on American Idol.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During his televised audition and the performances that followed, he sang for his nephew-son who was still under his care due to his sister\u2019s ongoing drug addiction. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNot only was I singing to this child, but there\u2019s a million other children and there\u2019s a billion people in this world that go through what Rashad was going through,\u201d Donaldson said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At 28 years old, Donaldson progressed to the top 14 on American Idol season 16 before being eliminated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Donaldson believes he didn\u2019t make it all the way because he got in his head.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI had a dream that I was going to win, I saw myself winning, but I second-guessed myself under the pressure,\u201d Donaldson said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Naturally, both he and his family were disappointed. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt was a heavy punch to the gut, but it\u2019s a learning process and he came out better,\u201d Payne said.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

American Idol gave him opportunities Donaldson wouldn\u2019t have had otherwise, fans even made a GoFundMe for $7,000 to help him with his bills after hearing his story. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Moving on from American Idol, Donaldson continued his music career and maintained care of Rashad. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Before becoming a student at LBCC, Donaldson released his single \u2018Casualty of Love\u2019 in 2021, which has become his favorite. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201c\u2018Casualty of Love\u2019 is universal. Love is tragic, it\u2019s a casualty,\u201d Donaldson said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

While \u2018Casualty of Love\u2019 expanded Donaldson\u2019s career, he felt that he was missing what he needed to truly succeed in music. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Donaldson came back to college at LBCC, which has given him insight into aspects of business that are entwined with the music industry. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI feel like people don\u2019t respect you unless you learn all the facets of what you\u2019re doing. I learned fairly early on in American Idol that there were a lot of business things I did not know,\u201d Donaldson said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

More than that, he has made friends along the way. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Marcio Donaldson laughs in front of the Long Beach City College Welcome Center on Dec. 3 2024. Donaldson is going to school to further his career and prove to his children that they can too. (Sofia Hopkins).<\/sup><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMarcio is such a genuine person, he\u2019s been through a lot, but even through it he has so much love to give,\u201d said Donaldson\u2019s friend and classmate, Natalie Moumdjian.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not only is he going to school for himself, but he\u2019s also doing it for his children, which now include seven-year-old Rashad, a two-year-old, and a one-year-old.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey need to know that through adversity you still need to work hard. I was always a scholar, I just needed to substantiate my place in the industry,\u201d Donaldson explained. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Throughout his education, Donaldson has continued his love for music.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He will be performing in Las Vegas on Dec. 19 and Feb. 25 with Grammy and Emmy winner Diane Warren. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Donaldson learns from his experiences and hardships and turns them into music.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDon\u2019t be so hard on yourself because you\u2019ve already accomplished so much more than what you thought you could, oftentimes we think too much about winning as opposed to the process alone of getting there, don\u2019t miss that,\u201d Donaldson said. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Once performing on the television series American Idol, Long Beach City College student Marcio Donaldson combines business and music to succeed despite the challenges that have come his way.  \u201cI\u2019ve […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":146,"featured_media":16446,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[5],"tags":[2708,5771,5319,5772,29,1263,142,68,5590,5318,5320,81],"class_list":["post-16445","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-news","tag-american","tag-american-idol","tag-hopkins","tag-idol","tag-lbcc","tag-lifestyle","tag-long-beach","tag-long-beach-city-college","tag-singer","tag-sofia","tag-sofia-hopkins","tag-students"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3Skgy-4hf","jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/lbccviking.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/Lifestyle_-20241126_AmericanIdolProfile_SHopkins-scaled.jpg?fit=2560%2C1706&ssl=1","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbccviking.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16445","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbccviking.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbccviking.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbccviking.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/146"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbccviking.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=16445"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/lbccviking.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16445\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16449,"href":"https:\/\/lbccviking.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16445\/revisions\/16449"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbccviking.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/16446"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lbccviking.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=16445"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbccviking.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=16445"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lbccviking.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=16445"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}