International singer Emily Yates returns to High Desert to perform with Divas3

The Las Vegas-based pop vocal trio Divas3 will perform in April as part of the Newton T. Bass Family Concert Series at the Victor Valley College Performing Arts Center in Victorville.

Divas3 consists of “powerhouse” Las Vegas vocalists performing four decades of chart-topping hits by Celine Dion, Cher, Dolly Parton, Whitney Houston, Aretha Franklin, and more.

Their three-part harmony arrangements, joined by piano and tracks, pay tribute to some of the biggest divas in music history, organizers say.

The singers

Nearly a dozen women are part of the Divas3 group, with three singers selected for each tour stop.

Performing at the center are singers Charity Farrell, Crystal Garrett, and Apple Valley native Emily Yates. The other 2023 singers include Ruby Lewis, Trenyce Cobbins, Tracy Distefano, Samantha Duval, Crystal Stark, Kirbi Long, and Nicole Vanessa Ortiz.

The Divas3 have held multiple residencies in Las Vegas and have performed on many popular cruise lines for audiences worldwide.

Emily Yates

Farrell told the Daily Press she’s excited that Yates is returning to the High Desert, where she first stepped on stage.

Considered a “show stopper” from a young age, Yates made her performing debut at age 8 at fairs across the West Coast.

A 2008 Apple Valley High School graduate, Yates studied music at Young Americans College of the Performing Arts.

Yates credits her scholarship with the nonprofit Young Americans at age 19, giving her a chance to hone her craft internationally with successful tours of Germany and Japan.

She would go on to sing and dance in more than 51 countries.

Yates moved to New York after long stints in Las Vegas as the lead singer in “Vegas! The Show”, “Tony n Tina's Wedding,” and “Fantasy.”

As a solo concert artist, Yates has also performed her show “Show Must Go On” to sold-out crowds worldwide and on international cruise ships.

In 2020, Yates joined fellow Apple Valley native and actor/singer Chelsea Emma Franko to record a music video to bring attention to renovation efforts for the Victorville-based Cultural Arts Center of the High Desert, damaged in a fire that year.

With downtown Victorville as a background, Yates and Franko sang the song When You Believe from the 1998 film The Prince of Egypt.

Divas3 fans

"It's amazing to see Emily go from a child singing on stage in the High Desert to singing as an adult around the world," theater enthusiast Charlene Asbury of Hesperia told the Daily Press. "Emily is proof that our area is ripe with talent."

Divas3 fan Rima Xiques took to Facebook to share her thoughts about a recent show that she attended in Florida.

“I myself toured with my group in the ’70s and truly appreciated every nuance of your performance,” Xiques said. “Vocals were strong and beautiful, your choreography was charming, and your arrangements special. I hope to catch your show again.”

The Victor Valley Community Concert Association and Live On Stage, Inc present the Divas3 show.

The VVC Concert Association has presented nationally acclaimed entertainment to the community since 1962. This all-volunteer nonprofit organization is committed to enriching the cultural life of Victor Valley through live performances.

Live On Stage, Inc. provides entertainment attractions and support services to an American community of concert presenters.

Divas3 will perform at 2:30 p.m. on April 16 at the VVC Performing Arts Center at 18422 Bear Valley Road in Victorville.

Single tickets are $35 for adults and $5 for children 17 and under.

Admission to the concert is included with a subscription to the VVC Concert Association’s 2022-2023 Newton T. Bass Family Concert Series, sponsored by The Apple Valley Foundation.

For more information or to purchase tickets, call 760-961-0486, or visit vvcca.org.   

Daily Press reporter Rene Ray De La Cruz may be reached at 760-951-6227 or RDeLaCruz@VVDailyPress.com. Follow him on Twitter @DP_ReneDeLaCruz.

This article originally appeared on Victorville Daily Press: Divas3 singers with local native Emily Yates to perform in Victorville