BET's 'Sunday Best' music competition features South Bend musician in Top 20

SOUTH BEND, Ind. — The City of South Bend will see a familiar face on a popular gospel singing competition called ‘Sunday Best,’ which airs on June 30 on BET. 

Emorja Roberson, a South Bend native, will make his debut on the show’s ninth season premiere. Roberson said he’s in the Top 20 after making it through try out rounds in Detroit and Atlanta. 

“Right now you can definitely call me part of the top 20 now,” Roberson said. “There’s a lot more to come after that but as of right now the blanket statement I did make the top 20 out of over several 100 submissions to the competition.”

Roberson, 27, said he started singing at South Bend’s Olivet AME Church as a child. I’m 2019, he’s now classically trained as a singer and pianist. 

He’s working on his doctorate at the University of Notre Dame. 

Roberson said trying out for the show definitely made him step out of his comfort zone. He said he is more of an introvert, so he usually shies away from voice competitions. 

“As a musician we have to be extroverted because we’re always on stage doing things,” he said. “But this taught me to sometimes go out there and be bold and do it.”

In the show’s ninth season, the judges and gospel superstars Kelly Price, Erica Campbell, and Jonathan McReynolds will weed through hundreds of contestants to find the genre’s next star. Kirk Franklin, a gospel legend, will return as the shows host. 

The show’s two-hour premiere airs on BET this Sunday starting at 8 p.m.