//Five finalists selected for Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting Contest

Five finalists selected for Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting Contest

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PHOTO: Kyle Chamberlain of Lake Park, GA; David Rodock of Adel, GA; Emmett Carlisle of Gainesville, FL; Kevin Stephenson of Valdosta, GA; Tracy Horenbein from Tallahassee, FL

HAHIRA – The Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting Contest finalists are from Lake Park, Valdosta, Adel, Tallahassee, and Gainesville.

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Hahira, Georgia, August 11, 2022: Five finalists have been selected to play at the Finals of the Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting Contest, coming from Tallahassee and Gainesville, Florida, and Lake Park, Valdosta, and Adel, Georgia.

“I’m very excited to hear everyone sing!” said organizing committee chair Angela Duncan. ”It’s going to be a great event.”

That’s 7-11 PM, Saturday, August 20, 2022, at the Turner Center Art Park in Valdosta, Georgia.

Chuck Roberts will be the Master of Ceremonies.

MC Chuck Roberts

“I grew up in Quitman and Valdosta, raised by two loving musical parents to enjoy and appreciate ALL kinds of music, because the arts enrich the mind and nourish the soul. Presbyterian Church Minister of Music for over 30 years. St. James Episcopal Soloist for over 25 years. Sang with Botie Chitty and The Singing Americans for 10 years. Recently sang two solos with Ed Barr Orchestra for Turner Center Arts AMERICAN SOUNDTRACK VOL. IX. I have the sweetest wife in the world, Sheila and three beautiful and talented daughters and two talented sons, and a new Golden Doodle puppy.”

Here’s what the five songwriters want Chuck to tell the three judges and you the listeners about themselves and their song.

Kyle Chamberlain from Lake Park, GA: “is a singer and songwriter, who loves our local flat water.”

With folk song “Suwannee River and Me”: “The song is a tribute to the Suwannee river and its music park, and the joy and love it brings to me and many others.”

David Rodock from Adel, GA: “Writer” turned “musician”

With Folk song “Take Me to the Suwannee”: “twenty minutes and a pot of coffee on a Sunday morning effort”

Emmett Carlisle from Gainesville, FL: “Florida boy working on my 8th CD of original songs. Americana, Bluesgrass, and Folk Rock love songs mixed together might describe the sound. I play most of the big Festivals in Florida including the Will Mclean Festival, Gamble Rogers Festival, Florida Folk Festival, Sarasota Folk Festival, Clay County Fair, and many venues around the State. My newest CD is “Higher Hopes Bigger Dreams,” was awarded CD Of The Year (Song Writer) by the Jacksonville Times-Union. I am now writing songs for #8. Thanks to everyone who likes and shares with the coolest folks of all –The Fans. Peace.”

With Folk song “Suwannee River Nights”: “An original song about camping on the Suwannee River from the Okefenokee Swamp, Georgia to Old Town Florida. This is the title track for my 5th CD of original songs about the history, characters and environment of Florida and Georgia.”

Kevin Stephenson from Valdosta, GA: “I am sixty years old and a singer/songwriter and have been writing songs since high school. The song I submitted I have had in my head for a long time but never put it down on paper until recently and is a reflection of the many river trips I have made with my dad and my son and family, as the river has always been a part of our life whether fishing or playing on the sandbars.”

With Country song “It Don’t Get No Better Than This-The Alapaha”: “The song is a reflection of many memories that I have with all my family spending time at the river especially on the Alapaha river.”

Tracy Horenbein from Tallahassee, Florida: “performs and releases music with her Americana band Once Great Estate. When she is not writing music, she can be found enjoying the outdoors and rescuing animals with her husband.”

With Americana song, “Wild and Free”? “something that had good imagery and was also poetic.”

Follow this link for everything else about the Suwannee Riverkeeper Songwriting Contest 2022-08-20, including entry tickets to hear the headliners and these five finalists, and the prizes available:
wwals.net/pictures/2022-08-20–songwriting

About WWALS: Founded in June 2012, WWALS Watershed Coalition, Inc. (WWALS) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit educational charity. WWALS advocates for conservation and stewardship of the surface waters and groundwater of the Suwannee River Basin and Estuary, in south Georgia and north Florida, among them the Withlacoochee, Willacoochee, Alapaha, Little, Santa Fe, and Suwannee River watersheds, through education, awareness, environmental monitoring, and citizen activities. Since December 2016, John S. Quarterman is the Suwannee Riverkeeper®, which is a staff position and a project of WWALS as the member of Waterkeeper® Alliance for the Suwannee River Basin.

Contact: Committee Chair Angela Duncan, angelawong844@gmail.com