ROADTRIP, a band composed of four sophomores, will rock out in the final round of Montgomery County’s Got Talent at the Fillmore in Silver Spring May 22.

Lead guitarist and vocalist Theo Akpinar, drummer Siya Dalton, acoustic guitarist and vocalist April Ginns and bass/rhythm guitarist Adam Isaacs made a last minute decision to enter after hearing about the competition on a community listserv, Ginns said.

“We didn’t have any idea how many people were going to try out; we didn’t know the process, we just kind of showed up,” Ginns said.

The competition, now in its third year, promotes the importance of the arts in Montgomery County, said Marhonda Williams, MoCo’s Got Talent program leader for Montgomery County Recreation.

“MoCo’s Got Talent serves as a platform for creative expression that inspires young people to share their passion,” Williams said.

This year’s competition started with a pool of more than 50 acts who auditioned at five locations throughout the county.

After advancing to a semi-final round of 24 contestants, ROADTRIP was selected to compete in the finals against 11 other acts, ranging from bands and solo singers to an African dance group.

ROADTRIP has performed at block parties, coffeehouses, Battle of the Bands and the Bannockburn community music festival; however, the Fillmore will be the biggest venue they’ve ever performed at, Akpinar said.

At the finals, the band will perform “Gold on the Ceiling” by the Black Keys.

“It’s a song a lot of people know and it’s generally a crowd pleaser,” Ginns said.

To make their arrangement unique and appeal to the judges, ROADTRIP has added an acoustic guitar, new electric guitar riffs and features a female lead singer.

Judges rate each performance’s creativity, originality, quality, audience appeal, skill level and aesthetic appeal. Performers receive points according to their rating and the highest score wins.

“All performances that make it to the Fillmore get an awesome experience,” Williams said. Finalists are also offered additional performance opportunities throughout the year. This year’s winner may be featured as an act during the Silver Spring Summer Concert Series, held June 18 – Aug 6 in downtown Silver Spring, Williams said.

Though they would like to win the competition, the members of ROADTRIP are more focused on enjoying Sunday’s performance.

“If we win, I believe we’d be able to perform at different events in Montgomery County in the coming year, so that would still be cool, but this was the big thing,” Ginns said. “We’re just excited that we get to be in the show.”