Lea Michele Tells ‘The Glee Project’ Contestants to ‘Let Your Geek Flag Fly’

The second season of ‘The Glee Project‘ kicked off tonight (June 5) with a serious bang. The guest mentor was ‘Glee‘ superstar Lea Michele aka Rachel Berry. The 14 contestants were completely overwhelmed by her presence, with a few breaking into tears. Michele was introduced by co-creator Ryan Murphy, who called the show “an inspiration contest” and confirmed that there will not be multiple winners this season.

The radiant Michele offered a key piece of advice to the contestants as a whole. She told them, “Don’t be afraid to let your geek flag fly,” pointing out that ‘Glee’ proper works since the cast members aren’t afraid to be who they are. She imparted that wisdom to the wannabes vying for a role on the series.

For the homework assignment, the cast performed Lady Gaga‘s ‘Born This Way’ for Murphy and Michele. “It seemed like you have been working together for a while,” Michele said of the overall performance. That’s a major compliment, since it was the first homework assignment and they haven’t had much experience partnering up.

Michele told Southern, blond beauty Shanna, 21, and androgynous Dani, 23, that she can’t stop looking at either of them, and that she wants to see more. However, she told Dani she needs to take an extra step to show who she is as a performer, since she already seems to know who she is as a person. Michele also called out the fabulous, confident and blind Mario, who brought it with loads of charisma.

The winner of the homework assignment, though, was Shanna. Her prize for winning was a one-on-one session with Michele. That’s pretty priceless. Michele shared that she still works with a vocal coach and can now sing notes and songs that she couldn’t four years prior, indicating that a career as a singer entails a lot of work and even more dedication.