Friday January 24th, Lincoln Motor Company celebrated their “Chart Your Course” contest. The event was held at the Dream hotel in Hollywood.
Lincoln received over 1,600 entries for the contest before narrowing it down to 4 finalists with the winner to be announced after the 62nd Grammy Awards Sunday January 26th. To aid them in the elimination process and to help mentor the contestants Lincoln called on Jon Batiste. Jon Batiste is a world renowned musician and the bandleader for the Late Show with Stephen Colbert. Batiste showed great enthusiasm and belief in every finalist.
The night began with a performance by Gavin M. a songwriter from St. Louis. Gavin performed his song “Old and Young Soul Tonight.” A ballad about self discovery and being true to yourself performed on solely a piano.
The night progressed with the next contestant Anna Field, a musician from Smyrna, Georgia who performed a song called “Go.”
The following contestant was Cas Haley, a songwriter from Paris, Texas who shared a beautiful song entitled “Every Road I’m On” that exuded hope for every trial you face.
The final contestant to perform was Edem Garro with her song “What Drives You,” which was performed on a harp.
After all the finalists performed, Jon Batiste took to the stage to grace the party with an hour long set. Jon and the band had never played together prior and it produced such a spontaneous setlist. After his set, Jon spoke to why he partnered with Lincoln and how proud he was of all the finalists. “These four people all have a different relationship with the craft, singing and musicianship, and that’s a beautiful thing. Bringing people together and doing something magical, I feel like we accomplished that. Thank y’all for coming and celebrating with us. God bless and good night.”
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