E! NetworksOn this week's episode of Opening Act, the Artist Development Team is looking for the perfect star to open for Gym Class Heroes.
For those who don't know, the band was discovered and signed by mentor Pete Wentz—and he feels like they need a rock band, or an act with some hip hop edge to it.
Enter TwentyForSeven: a group of four best friends from Canton, MI with a pop/rock sound.
They're the perfect choice for Gym Class Heroes, and Olivia Lee heads to Detroit to surprise Rajiv Dhall, Blake Hayes, Matt Pastor and Corey De Luca with the good news.
In order to keep it a surprise, though, the Opening Act team tells TwentyForSeven that they're being filmed as part of a fitness commercial at their local gyn. Sneaky sneaky! Which is why they're completely blown away when Olivia appears with the chance of a lifetime.
Before being shipped off to Los Angeles to meet with Nigel Lythgoe and Antonina Armato, the boys get a personalized message from Gym Class Heroes, phone calls to their parents and a couple of packed bags. Then it's goodbye, Michigan and hello, California!
If TwentyFor Seven thinks this is a vacay, they'd be wrong! Because there's no rest when you've got less than a week's time to prepare for a show.
Nothing proves this more than when Nigel asks the boys to perform, should be a piece of cake, right?
Wrong. Because what was once full of promise falls completely flat, as Rajiv's nerves get the best of him and his vocals miss their perfect pitch mark.
"I'm anxious that we haven't got enough time for TwentyForSeven—to get them to the point where they're going to be good enough to open," Nigel says.
Yikes! But, as we saw last week with Arielle, vocal coach Nick Cooper is a bit of a voice whisperer. And, after a couple of hours with Nick, it becomes clear that Rajiv's real issue isn't with his talent, but more with his lack of confidence.
With only 3 days left until showtime, Rajiv has to get over the fact that his parents have never encouraged his career and move forward with being the lead vocalist his band needs.
Luckily, they've got A-list producer Jimmy Messer on their side, and the perfect song for their performance comes in the form of a cover of Katy Perry's "I Kissed a Girl." Pretty fitting considering one of the band members landed their first kiss the same day, right Matt?
Once the boys leave La-La Land and head to Fort Bliss, Texas to perform with Gym Class Heroes, Rajiv's old fears kick in, and he admits, "If I don't pull this off, I'm not just letting myself and my dad down, I'm letting my 3 best friends down."
Those 3 BFFs know how to settle Rajiv's nerves, and they call in a lifeline to mentor Nick Cooper and beg him to fly down to give Rajiv a pep talk.
After a rallying cry from Nick, plus a meeting with the band members of Gym Class Heroes before the show, TwentyForSeven is ready for their big stage debut. And, in spite of the fact that Rajiv's parents are front and center watching his every move, the boys nail the cover song and original song of their performance.
Score one for the opening act!
Tune in for next week's episode of Opening Act on Monday at 10/9 C only on E!