Majeste Pearson, daughter of Bishop Carlton Pearson, made her television debut on Fox’s The Four: Battle for Stardom last Thursday night.
Her performances of “Someone Like You” and “Chandelier” won over the hearts of the judges and the audience, so she will advance to the next round as the newest member of the Four. We caught up with Majeste to talk about her experiences leading up to joining the Four and what we can expect from her in tonight’s episode.
The Knockturnal: You have an amazing voice and performed so well in front of the audience on the four. How did you get into performing and realize you want to pursue a singing career?
Majeste Pearson: Man, great question. I immediately was attracted to it at a young age, from like four and five. I grew up in a church full of music and my household was full of music, my parents exposed me to a lot of musical theater, and I really started getting an idea that that was something I wanted to do at a very young age. They put me in as many plays as possible and I got a lot of practice and got to discover different parts of my voice. And I just love being in front of me people and sharing myself.
The Knockturnal: Your father, Bishop Carlton Pearson, is a well known religious figure who got a lot of attention in the late 1990s and early 2000s. What was it like opening up about your family and specifically your father’s journey on television?
Majeste Pearson: I thought it was awesome because he and Joshua Marston, who is a phenomenal director, just came out with a movie based on my father’s switching beliefs, it’s actually on Netflix. So the word had been out for a while and so to be able to share it on another platform, we were all excited about. Because it’s something we really believe in, having that inclusive mindset, so it was just another awesome platform to inspire people and make them feel loved, for sure.
The Knockturnal: Your performances of Adele’s “Someone Like You” and “Chandelier” by Sia were both incredible, what went into the process of choosing those songs to perform?
Majeste Pearson: It sure was a process. So I knew for a fact I wanted to sing “Chandelier,” it’s one of my favorite songs and it was the top choice on my list. Then the group there, the music team which is an awesome music team, they had the idea to do “Someone Like You,” so we were rehearsing it and singing it normal, like Adele’s normal version. And then we were like lets add some extra ‘oomph’ to it, like bring it up-tempo and add more of a bouncy vibe and so that ended up working out and the band just killed it, and I was like this will be so much fun to perform. I thought I could still convey that emotion that Adele was going through me and that version.
The Knockturnal: On The Four, once you get past the first performance round, you have to choose a member of the four to challenge. What led you to choose to challenge Carvena?
Majeste Pearson: I chose Carvena because I thought she was too much of my voice in many ways but also different. So I thought it would be a crazy battle to have, to be what we call on the show a sound clash. And it definitely was a sound clash because I appreciated her music and her style of voice and I thought let’s do it, let’s see who wants it more. I just wanted to challenge her, I thought she was the best.
The Knockturnal: Were you nervous to perform in front of DJ Khaled, Diddy, and Meghan Trainor? What was it like to hear their feedback on your performances?
Majeste Pearson: It was awesome and I mean that was a dream come true to just have those people in the industry be able to appreciate my gift. I wasn’t as nervous as I thought I would be, I’ll tell you. As soon as I got out there and I saw the audience’s energy and the lights and everything I was like “oh my gosh” and I was just freaking out and so just talking to them I was just really trying to be focused and not freak out. But I wasn’t super nervous for some reason to speak with them. We had an eye contact and I didn’t feel weird about it.
The Knockturnal: Next episode you have the possibility of being challenged. How have you been preparing to perform in the next round?
Majeste Pearson: Totally, this week is a total switch-up from last week, so I hope everyone enjoys it. It’s slower because I’m doing a ballad. I was asking Instagram and social media what they think I should do and a lot of people were like “sing R&B” and some people were like “sing pop, we want to hear a ballad,” so I tried to take that into account. But I’m glad I get to share this side of myself. I’m excited that my following and new friends have shot up and I get to reach all these people. It’s unbelievable.
The show airs tonight on Fox!
