Young Talent Rocks For Big Crowds

Photos provided by David DeRosa
Pursuing JC, an eight-member Christian rock band, astonishes many audiences because of its young talent.

Gregory DeRosa, of Pursuing JC, plays the piano.

By Janee Law
jlaw@longislandergroup.com

Pursuing JC, a Christian rock band whose eight members range in age from 12-21, has been astonishing audiences for the past six years, during which it’s performed across Long Island, and the northeast.

The band, which has members from the Town of Huntington, has performed for audiences in the thousands, and its next performance is set for Saturday, 7-8:30 p.m. at Shelter Rock Church in Syosset. The concert is free and open to all.

David DeRosa, one of the supporting parents of the band, said that the group started in December 2011 at Shelter Rock Church.

“At Christmas time, a lot of the time the kids would only do bells so I wanted to try to do a tween band,” he said. “We did one song and from a church perspective they loved the fact that they saw these kids go up there and, for their ages, do so well.”

From there, the band continued to grow, having done 300 shows in several locations, including Long Island, Virginia, Connecticut, Lake George, Pennsylvania and New Hampshire.

“The enjoyment that people get is very strong because they are a younger group,” DeRosa said. “When you do some of these church events, there’s an emotional tie that happens with some of the people when they’re watching the kids up on stage.”

Band members include Melville siblings Corinne, Gregory and Kelsey DeRosa; Dix Hills siblings Devin and Jordan Simpson; Kaemon Van, of Smithtown; Brandon Braum, of Smithtown; and Mark Lopresti, of Melville.

Corinne, 15, plays drums; Gregory, 16, plays piano; Kelsey, 19, is the lead singer and plays violin; Devin, 21, a singer; Jordan, 18, the bassist; Kaemon, 12, on electric guitar; Brandon, 15, a singer; and Mark, 18, the saxophonist.

DeRosa said the group plays original songs and cover songs from Christian artists, such as Newsboys, Steven Curtis Chapman and For King & Country, and mainstream artists like Van Halen, Ed Sheeran and Bruno Mars.

“It’s kept them safe through their middle and high school years,” DeRosa said. “You spend your weekends in the church practicing and you end up achieving so much because you’re playing in front of large groups of people. There’s an appreciation when you do these church events that are very different from others.”

Devin, who graduated from Half Hollow Hills High School East in 2014, said her confidence has grown since she first joined in January 2016.

“I didn’t start singing in front of people until I joined. I actually didn’t want to,” Devin, who’s studying media and production at Queens College, said. “David asked me to fill in with a rehearsal for them… and he kept pushing me further and further out of my comfort zone and now it’s all that I love to do.”

She added the band has taught her to believe in herself and has broadened her love for music.

Kelsey, who graduated from Walt Whitman High School in 2016, said the goal for the upcoming performance is to wrap up the summer with an awesome night of worship and putting on a great show.

“A couple of us will be leaving for college in the days after that so we’ll have a couple of months of not being able to play together as much,” Kelsey, who’s studying Christian leadership at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee, said. “We want to kick off the school year and ending the summer with a great night that we can get our community involved in.”

Having been part of the band since it started in 2011, Kelsey said the group has become a family.

“I have my own biological siblings in the group but even the other guys and girls I really love them as family,” she said. “We have such a family dynamic both on and off the stage, which is something I will always cherish.”