Their eyes were wide, their mouths hung open and their hands sometimes waved in the air.
As the last notes of “I Will Always Love You” faded into the muggy afternoon, one fan could no longer contain herself.
“I love your singing Miss Jayme!” cried a little girl with a ponytail, jumping to her feet.
Hopefully, Simon Cowell will be just as smitten.
“I’m kind of scared of Simon,” admitted New Braunfels resident Jayme Allison, an “American Idol” hopeful.
Before the sun rises Aug. 11, the 19-year-old Texas Tech University student will join legions of other aspiring stars who will wait in line to audition at the Alamodome. But before singing for Cowell, Paula Abdul and Randy Jackson, Jayme belted out a few tunes for her students at Triple L Ranch Child Development Center on Wednesday.
“She’s very good, I really hope she wins,” said Sara Morgan, 7.
The center’s owner Shirley Smithers said she was shocked when she recently discovered her summer employee’s talent.
Smithers said another teacher mentioned that Jayme sang with the children and was showing them how to yodel. The teacher said she had also listened to Jayme’s CD and was planning to get an autograph.
“The next time I saw her I said, ‘Jayme, do you sing?’” Smithers recalled. “I listened to her CD and I was thrilled, I can’t get over that it’s our little Jayme.”
The Canyon High School grad said she plays violin, piano and has been singing as long as she can remember. While she plans to audition with an Etta James song, Jayme said she usually sticks to country and classical music.
“I’m going to sing ‘At Last.’ I Iove that song,” she said. “But my all-time favorite (singer) is Martina McBride.”
She has been watching “American Idol” since the first season in 2002 and couldn’t wait for her chance in the spotlight.
“Carrie Underwood is definitely my favorite,” she said. “I told my dad, ‘If they ever come to Texas, you have to take me so I can try out.’”
Jayme’s parents, Danny and Pam Allison, were just as excited when auditions came to the Alamo City. Jayme said her mom has agreed to get up at 3 a.m. to wait with Jayme at the Alamodome.
Triple L Ranch student Ashley Trayler, 7, said she’s given Jayme all the audition advice she will need.
“Watch out for Simon, but I already told you that!” she said to her teacher with a grin. “You’re the best and I think you’ll win.”
Jayme said she’s been waiting for her big break since she was in elementary school herself. Her first big performance was in the fifth grade.
“I was in karate and we had a huge black belt ceremony at the auditorium of (Texas Lutheran University),” she recalled. “I sang the national anthem and I think that was the first time I was in front of a lot of people.”
These days, Jayme’s right at home in front of a crowd whether she’s singing “The Star-Spangled Banner” before a Houston Astros game, or teaching her students how to yodel.
And no matter what happens when she’s alone with the judges, Jayme said she knows it’s just another gig.
“Even if I don’t make it on, it will be good experience,” she said. “That’s why I do stuff like this.”
Jayme took the talent show route last year, reaching the semi-finals in the state-wide “Star of Tomorrow” talent contest.
Between singing engagements, she is studying public relations at Texas Tech, where she will start her sophomore year in the fall. She minors in vocal performance and sings with the university’s choir.
“I want to do PR for a large corporation or for a band,” she said.
She may have a back-up plan, but Jayme hasn’t left the stage just yet. When asked if she still had hopes of music career, she just smiled.
