Cristina Raè, lead vocalist of Aretha Franklin Broadway touring musical ‘R.E.S.P.E.C.T,’ talks young stage fright, ‘America’s Got Talent’ and perseverance

To hear Cristina Raè talk about her earliest stage experience, it really is a wonder her career has gone from TV screens to Broadway to a national tour.

In short, that early performance involved a lot of tears.

Raè grew up singing with her family in the car – alternative rock songs like “In the Air Tonight” by Phil Collins and “Lights” by Journey were favorites – and at church. Still, something about having to introduce herself and sing a song in front of her fellow campers at a performing arts camp made the shy 7-year-old Raè start to cry.

“We did ‘West Side Story’ that summer, and I was in the ensemble,” she said. “My mom was like ‘Why is my baby in the back?’ And my aunt was like ‘When your baby can say her name without crying, she can get in the front.’ And so since then, I’ve not cried, and I’m in the front luckily.”

A young Raè would be proud to know she’s front and center in “R.E.S.P.E.C.T.,” a tribute concert celebrating the music of the Queen of Soul herself, Aretha Franklin. In between hits such as “Natural Woman,” “Think,” “I Knew You Were Waiting for Me,” “Chain of Fools” and “Respect,” audiences learn about the highs and lows, the triumphs and tragedies of Franklin’s life.

The tour features Raè (lead vocalist), Tiyanna Gentry (vocalist), Demiah Latreece (vocalist), Jaymyria Etienne (swing), TJ Griffin (drums), Osei Kweku (bass), Joshua Vasquez (guitar) and Michael Williams (keys).

“R.E.S.P.E.C.T.” is directed by Dean Elliott, music directed by Joshua Vasquez and Darnell White, stage managed by Raechelle Steward, who is also the audio engineer, and choreographed by Anthony Murphy. The creative team also includes Cody Murray, Joe Ruffner, Mickey Mulcahy, Taylor Edelle Stewart, Roderick Vincent, Ruby Leigh and Antonio Consuegra.

The show stops by the First Interstate Center for the Arts on Friday.

Years after her teary-eyed summer camp debut, Raè began making a name for herself after competing on the 15th season of “America’s Got Talent.” Being on TV was a fluke, Raè said, as the initial audition was a talent showcase wherein everything that could go wrong did. Save for the quality of Raè’s voice, of course.

Soon after that showcase, Raè performed “In the Air Tonight” during Amateur Night at the Apollo, taking first place in the competition. A video of her performance caught an “America’s Got Talent” producer’s eye, and she was invited to sing in front of judges Simon Cowell, Heidi Klum, Howie Mandel and Sofia Vergara.

Raè began auditioning with her go-to “In the Air Tonight” until Cowell requested she sing a different song. She chose “Gimme Shelter” by the Rolling Stones and received a standing ovation from all four judges. Klum pressed her Golden Buzzer for Raè, sending her straight through to the quarterfinals. Raè ultimately placed third in the competition.

She followed that up with an appearance on “America’s Got Talent: All-Stars,” where she made it to the preliminary rounds.

“I want to be a household, internationally known name,” she said before performing Lady Gaga’s “Hold My Hand.” “I want to perform on bigger stages.”

And perform on bigger stages she did. Rae appeared in productions of “Porgy and Bess,” “Dreamgirls,” “The Color Purple,” “Fame” and “Little Shop of Horrors” before making her Broadway debut in “The Wiz.”

But TV appearances or not, Raè was going to make things happen for herself and her son.

“I have always been a person that’s like, ‘Watch me. You told me I can’t. I’m going to do it. Watch,’ ” she said. “It’s not to show them that I could. It’s to show me that I could, because a lot of times, the lack of belief is in self, and I have to push myself or no one else will.”

It was Raè herself who heard about “R.E.S.P.E.C.T.” auditions; she wasn’t submitted by an agent or manager. She recorded herself singing “Natural Woman” and eventually got a callback. Soon enough, the role was hers.

“R.E.S.P.E.C.T.” features songs and stories that show who Franklin was on and off stage.

“I love how they did it, because it’s not an overload of information, but it’s the information that people should pay more attention to,” Raè said. “Because a lot of times, being a famous person, people pay attention to them but they’re not so great, and Aretha did her thing. Eighteen Grammys?! She was a legend.”

Raè has worked hard to perform the songs as Franklin wrote them while still allowing herself a chance to add a “churchy” moment here and there like Franklin would have done during live performances. Raè said she’s tried to internalize the message or story Franklin was trying to express in her song and share that through her own performances.

It helps that there are a lot of similarities between Franklin and Raè. Franklin was proud to say she was from Memphis, by way of Detroit, while Raè is from Nashville and her mother lived in Detroit.

“It’s a lot of things that I’m realizing that my trajectory lines up with Aretha,” Raè said. “And I’m grateful for that because it shows that I’m going up and I’m not just remaining stagnant. All I gotta get is at least 18 Grammys, then I’ll be good to go.”