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LEXINGTON, NC – Childress Vineyards will kick-off festivities in preparation for the 25th annual Barbecue Festival in Lexington with an American-Idol style talent competition scheduled to be held Saturday, October 4 and Sunday, October 5 at the winery located at the crossroads of Highway 52 and 64 in Lexington.
Contestants from ages 16 and up will compete for the opportunity to perform on the Grandstand Main Stage at The Barbecue Festival that will take place on Saturday, October 25, in Lexington. The winner of the Childress Idol contest will be given the chance to sing the National Anthem and perform a 10-minute set prior to the 104.1 WTQR sponsored Guitar Pull featuring major national talent. Additionally, the winner will receive a $250 cash prize and a trophy from Hayes Jewelers of Lexington. BB&T Bank will give Childress Idol t-shirts to the first 50 contestants.
Talent for the Childress Idol competition should plan to arrive at the winery at 9 a.m. on Saturday, October 4. Numbers will be assigned for the order of performance. Each contestant should prepare for a 60-second audition, a capella, for the first round of the competition that will begin at Noon. The field of contestants will be narrowed to half and second round contestants will perform another 60-second audition, a capella until 3 p.m.
The top-10 contestants will advance to the third round of competition to be held at the winery on Sunday, October 5 beginning at 1 p.m. Contestants advancing to this round of the Childress Idol contest will need to bring music in CD form and be prepared to perform a three-four minute piece for the judges. The top three finalists will be selected on the same day. Final round performances of three-four minutes each will start at 3:30 p.m. and each contestant will also be asked to perform the National Anthem. The winner will be crowned at 4 p.m.
Stephanie Saintsing, executive director of The Barbecue Festival, will be among the judges, as will WTQR radio personality Angie Ward, Lee Jessup, president of the United Way of Davidson County and Kathleen Watson, director of marketing and public relations of Childress Vineyards.
“We are excited to have Childress Idol kick off the list of official festival events leading up to the Barbecue Festival on October 25,” said Stephanie. “There are so many talented singers in our area…it is going to be a lot of fun hearing all of the contestants and selecting a winner.”
“We’re always delighted at the wonderful level of talent that turns out to compete for the Childress Idol contest,” said Kathleen Watson, director of marketing and public relations for the winery. “From the interest we’ve had so far, it should be a good event to come out and watch.”
Childress Idol contest is part of the winery’s annual Music in the Vineyard series which provides performances by local and regional musicians free of charge for the enjoyment of winery guests every weekend day from May through the end of October.
The Barbecue Festival later in the month is also free to the public. For details on all the entertainment and activities, go to www.barbecuefestival.com.
Official Childress Idol contest rules are available by calling the winery at 336-236-9463 and ask for the operator.
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