A
Daughters View - The Joy of Tony Roi
I have only seen Tony Roi twice in person – BUT I see him every
single day here in Olathe, Kansas. My mom shares this home with me -
she is Shirley, otherwise now known as Sylvia, for reasons known
only to those close to Tony Roi and his fans!! Everyone who reads
Branson Critic is aware that she has a Tony Shrine in her room –
it’s grown a lot since the last review I wrote for Tony – last
October!!
 Everywhere
my mom and my aunt Sandi go, it is like a walking commercial for
Tony Roi. They pass out brochures for his show to total
strangers – for instance, we recently had a garage sale, and they
had Tony’s music playing on the stereo and they were passing out the
brochures and singing Tony's praises to everyone who would listen!!
A friend of mine just left here this evening – she hadn’t seen the
Shrine – but she was impressed and thought Tony looked exactly like
Elvis. Her family is planning a trip to Branson in the fall – but
they wondered about whether or not it was all country music and
hillbilly entertainment. So she got to hear the “Tony Roi
Commercial” and the “Branson Education Talk” and left here with a
brochure – she said her mom and dad will be thrilled to learn about
this show – they, too, were always big Elvis fans.
It’s been a little over a year since Tony Roi entered our lives.
There has been a lot of laughter in this house since that time – it
seems that there is a “reversal of roles,” and my mom and my aunt
are the teenagers and I seem to have become the mother!! They are
actually having a lot more fun than I am!!
They give Tony the credit for bringing them closer as sisters, too.
Mom is 12 years older than Sandi, so because of the age difference,
they didn’t spend much time together – until the day they discovered
Tony!! The Experience has bonded them together so closely – now they
talk almost every day – mostly about Tony - and of course, they head
to Branson whenever they can.
I also hear Tony’s voice in this house every day – it has become a
part of us – it used to always be one of his CD’s, but now there are
also two wonderful DVD’s that are playing on one TV or the other at
any given moment during the day or night!! Talk about obsession!!
(Although, I do have to admit it’s kind of nice to take a peek at
the man on occasion!!)
The last time I saw Tony was in November of 2005 when Branson critic
presented him with the
Best
Performer Award. From the looks of things, I’m pretty sure he
will win the award again this year! We had such a wonderful time –
my mom really did elbow me out of the way so she could be close to
Tony for the onstage pictures!! She won’t admit that, though. Then
our picture ended up on the front page of Branson Critic – three
very happy women – giddy over Tony!! I wonder what he thinks of all
this craziness.
I haven’t been able to go back since then, although my mom and Sandi
have made countless trips – you should see the “Tony Gallery” – I
think she’s lost count of the wonderful pictures of her and Tony
that Sherry has taken onstage. Sherry does a great job with her
photos of Tony and his fans. And Tony is such a good sport – he will
pose any way you ask him to – within reason, of course!! I hope to
be able to return to see him soon, but sometimes the job gets in the
way of the fun!!
I’ve been thinking that maybe Tony should call his show Tony Roi’s
Life Changing Experience!! I want to thank Tony for the change I
have seen in my mom in the past year. She has always been on the
“reserved” side – pretty shy actually – until Tony!! I never thought
I’d see my mother walking up to a stage in front of a lot of people
to get a kiss from a strange man!! My, how times have changed!!
 My
mom is what she calls “out of her box!” She was raised in the 1950’s
when Elvis was just starting out. My grandmother thought Elvis was a
TERRIBLE SINNER, and she and my mom had many a spat over him. I
think that is part of the reason that mom is so “over the moon” over
Tony – she was never allowed to be that way over Elvis…..so she’s
loving every minute of this
Tony Roi Phenomenon!! Reliving her lost youth, so to speak.
She is so much more outgoing since Tony – she dresses younger (but
not too young) – she is happier than I’ve seen her in forever. There
is almost always a smile on her face……..put there by the love for
this special man who is young enough to be her son!! Again, I wonder
what Tony thinks of all this craziness!!
Another benefit of this whole thing is that my mom has found some
amazing friends through the Tony Roi Fan Club. She never joined a
fan club in her life – she’s always been somewhat of a loner – until
Tony. She tells me all the time about the wonderful people she has
met in the past year and how they will be friends for life because
they have this common bond – Tony Roi.
She has also told me that Tony is not only a great singer and
performer, but he is a caring, giving human being. People have told
her stories about the kindness he has shown to them during hard
times – depression, heart attacks, and tragic deaths. One person
said that Tony seems to have a “sixth sense” about when people are
having problems and need a kind word or an extra hug.
I would like this review to count as my votes for Tony in this
year’s
Branson Critic Awards contest. Judging by the two times I have
seen him, he is everything that his fans say he is. I grew up
listening to Elvis, and I also think Tony is as close as any Tribute
Artist could come, and anyone who was ever an Elvis fan will be
amazed by the likeness. But as so many have written on previous
reviews, it is an undisputed fact that once you see Tony Roi, you
will become a Tony fan for life.
I guess there are a couple of changes in the TR Powerhouse Band this
year, but mom says they are all great and that the new girls singing
backup for Tony are terrific. She always has a good word to say
about Richard Bliss and the other people who work for Tony. It’s
just an all around friendly place.
His voice does give you chills – the dancing gives you the
opposite!! But the thing that impresses me the most is the absolute
JOY that this man seems to spread. Mom thinks that he must be on a
mission from God – and his assignment here on earth is just that –
spreading the JOY OF TONY ROI!
She says that ROI and JOY are synonymous – interchangeable. Such as
in song titles – “Roi To The World” – “I’ve Got The Roi, Roi, Roi,
Roi Down In My Heart” – “Roi In The Morning” – “Roiful, Roiful We
Adore Thee” – and “Ode To Roi!!” It’s silly, yes, but don’t we all
need that in our lives??
This world is sometimes pretty scary and pretty ugly, but if you
walk into
Music City Centre, the world outside disappears for awhile –
because of the JOY OF TONY ROI!! And if you’re anything like my mom
and my aunt, you will carry that JOY with you wherever you go!!
That’s all I can say – go see Tony – you, too, will be full of JOY!!
Tara Hendricks
Olathe, KS
Editors note: WOW,
what an incredible review!!!
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