Two Long Island contestants debuted on the season premiere of "Rock Star: Supernova" last night and avoided landing in the competition's dreaded "bottom three."
Dix Hills native Ryan Star, former lead singer of the band Stage, and Smithtown's Jill Gioia were two of 15 contestants on the CBS show, which airs its next episode tonight at 9 p.m. The object of the competition: to be chosen as lead singer for the band Supernova, made up of Motley Crue drummer Tommy Lee, Metallica bassist Jason Newsted and Guns N' Roses guitarist Gilby Clarke.
Star was the second contestant of the night to audition; he performed Goo Goo Dolls' rock ballad "Iris," starting off with an acoustic guitar but laying it down to finish the song. Guest panelist Dave Navarro praised Star's "versatility," but Newsted noted his habit of "looking down at the chords all the time."
Near the show's end, Gioia performed Janis Joplin's "Piece of My Heart," ending with an impressively high kick-jump. Newsted described the four-foot, 11-inch Gioia as "like a stick of dynamite: small package, great power."
By the show's end, audiences had voted on their three least favorite contestants; Star and Gioia weren't on the list. Tonight, the members of Supernova will kick off one of the bottom three.