Photo Courtesy Of WJTV
A Louisiana fifth-grader named Jordan Hollins recently stunned an audience with his powerful rendition of legendary soul singer Sam Cooke’s hit song “A Change Is Gonna Come.”
According to news reports, Jordan performed the iconic song at the “Artbreak’s Got Talent” show back in May. His soulful performance was captured on video and quickly went viral on social media.
“Oh lord,” a person in the audience was heard saying, amongst other gasps and whispers of astonishment. A full version of the clip was uploaded to TikTok and has accumulated three million views, over 900,000 likes and over 12,000 comments thus far.
“A Change Is Gonna Come” was reportedly inspired by Sam’s visit to Shreveport, Louisiana. in 1963, when he, his wife, his brother, and his manager were arrested after being turned away from the Holiday Inn on North Market. They reportedly had a reservation at the hotel, as Sam was set to perform at the Municipal Auditorium that night.
The song went on to become one of the most memorable in American history and is even celebrated by today’s younger generation, with Jordan being an example.
The Eden Gardens Elementary School student reportedly won the “Artbreak’s Got Talent” show with his version of Cooke’s hit record and told WJTV that his experience was “epic.”
“That’s the only word I have to say,” he said.
His grandmother, Henrietta Hollins, was happily shocked that her grandson won the competition.
“When they [said] he was the winner, I almost just fainted,” she said. “I had no idea that this song was going to do what it has done for the world through this little boy.”
The fifth-grader’s win included being able to perform with legendary gospel singer Kirk Franklin on the hit ABC show, The View. He also got to perform at Shreveport’s “Glo Fest,” which took place at the Bakowski Bridge of Lights on the Texas Street Bridge.
Jordan noted that through singing, he wanted to “change the world.”
“I have a chance to still change the world, by a song,” the 10-year-old said “I want hope. I want love to be in this world again, ’cause there is so much hate.”
He’s reportedly currently auditioning for a role with the children’s music group Kidz Bop.