New York City has never been short on talent, but on Saturday, October 3, 2026, an extraordinary amount of it gathered in one room. High above Times Square at Open Jar Studios, entertainment industry professional Steven J. Byrd presented the fifth edition of his Music Festival of Talent, and by every measure the afternoon was a triumph. Presented by ByrdDove MGMT & Bookings in association with Norman Cole of Cole Network Systems, the festival brought more than twenty independent performers from across the country to the heart of Broadway, and each one arrived ready to prove exactly why they belonged there.
Mr. Byrd has built this festival on a simple and generous idea: gifted artists deserve to be seen and heard by the people who can help carry their careers forward. Five editions in, that vision has become a genuine platform, one that welcomes singers, musicians, and performers with ambitions in theater and film as well as music. What made this year’s gathering so memorable, however, was not only the caliber of the performers. It was the way they showed up for one another.
Some of the artists included Pariss El brought decades of showmanship from Compton, California. Music runs through his bloodline; his mother, whom he calls his biggest inspiration, was both an Ikette and an Otisette. Signed in the 1990s to Better Place/Elektra Records, he has shared stages with Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown, and he is now releasing new projects through Herb Middleton’s Moontown Records & Publishing. His smooth, silky voice and his gift for drawing a crowd into the show were made for a room like this one.
From the Bronx came Diane Malloy, who weds contemporary sounds to the spirituality of gospel. A member of the New York/New Jersey GIN under Dr. Liz Black and of GMWA’s New York Alliance led by Angela “Missy” Billups, she was raised mainly by her grandmother and aunt and first encouraged by a kindergarten teacher who heard something special. She began releasing music in 2021 with “Please Don’t Go” and has since shared a handful of singles and collaborations, including the stirring Christmas single “Remember The King.”
Bonita Jalane, the Brooklyn-born, Atlanta-based, award-winning R&B and soul artist and Recording Academy voting member, has built an entire movement around healing, self-love, and resilience. Her latest album, Kept Kissing Frogs, traces the road from heartbreak to wholeness through the acronym F.R.O.G.: Forgive, Release, Overcome, Grow. Her feel-good spirit was a natural fit for a day defined by encouragement.
Queen Destiny represented Cincinnati, Ohio, with velvet vocals and what she calls grown-woman truth. Since her 2018 debut single, “SpaceXTime,” she has opened for Musiq Soulchild, Bobby Valentino, Warren G, and Adrian Crutchfield, performed at the African American Museum in Philadelphia in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., debuted her single “Legacy” at the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, held a residency at Nostalgia Wine & Jazz Lounge, and sung the National Anthem for the Cincinnati Bengals in 2022 and 2026.
Adria Glenn carried the weight and warmth of Memphis. Raised in faith and rooted in Mississippi and Memphis soul, the R&B singer-songwriter writes from a place both vulnerable and unflinching. She made her film debut in the R&B musical Things We Do for Love, and her catalog includes the TEA EP along with the singles “I Refuse,” “Fumbled,” and “Free.” Her press kit calls her Memphis R&B’s best-kept secret. After this festival, the secret is out.
The youngest of the group, thirteen year old London Koi of Birmingham, Alabama, is a singer, actress, and performer with a résumé many adults would envy. Her debut single, “O Holy Night,” was produced by industry veterans David Sea and Joel Johnson, and she has already graced the stages of Magic City Rising Stars, The Motown Musical, the Magic City Classic, and events for the NFL, the NAACP, and March Madness.
Ashley Keiko added the golden tone of her saxophone to the mix. A saxophonist, composer, singer-songwriter, and entrepreneur, she holds a master’s degree from Teachers College, Columbia University, and a bachelor’s in jazz performance from The New School. She has performed at the Apollo Theater, played for Steve Harvey on Family Feud, toured cross-country with El DeBarge, and released her debut album, Pursuit of Harmony, in 2020. She is also the founder of the music academy Keiko Studios.
Nia Renée, a singer, songwriter, dancer, and actress, captured national attention in 2021 as a Top 40 finalist on American Idol. Bullied as a child, she turned music into her refuge and then into her mission: to inspire and empower girls who feel unseen, unheard, or underestimated. Her range runs from soul-stirring R&B to full operas, and her presence is nothing short of magnetic.
Eight artists, eight different stories, eight distinct sounds, and not a hint of rivalry among them. They cheered for one another, lifted one another up, and celebrated each performance as though it were their own. In a business that so often pits artists against each other, the Festival of Talent offered something rarer and better: a community. Gospel stood beside jazz, R&B beside soul, a twelve-year-old beside seasoned veterans, and everyone left stronger for it.
Other artists included: Alex Sayles, Bonita Jalane Bria Cherie, Candace Lanee, Denise Weeks, Kenny Black, FlowBoyDuce, Nate Hicks Lynnette Rae, Nico Latrey, Lauren Byrd, Nia Tenee and Tanieka C.
That spirit is a credit to Steven J. Byrd, whose leadership set the tone for the entire afternoon. He did not simply assemble a lineup; he created a room where talent was honored and artists were treated like family. If the fifth Festival of Talent is any indication, the sixth cannot come soon enough.
