FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Wes Hagood
44084 Saxony Terrace
Home: (703) 723-1176
Ashburn, VA 20147
Pager: (703) 816-1193
By
Chanz to perform at Philadelphia Music Conference
By Chanz, the Ashburn, VA-based teen
female vocal group who sing pop music laced with a tinge of R&B was recently
selected to give a performance at the Philadelphia Music Conference (PMC) to
showcase their vocal talent. The
group’s manager submitted a demo tape and press kit last October and was
informed in late April that By Chanz
had been selected by a five judge panel from among the 1,500 bands who submitted
similar packages for one of the 250 showcase spots.
By Chanz consists of founding member
Kelley Hagood, 18, Sarah Luhrs, Lauren Smallwood, and Vanessa Vosteen all 14 and
from Loudoun County. The group
re-formed in October of last year when Luhrs and Vosteen joined. Smallwood was added in November and is the group’s rap/hip
hop artist. Amanda Szott, 15, from
Fairfax County was added in February.
“This
is the big time,” said Luhrs when learning about the invitation to perform at
PMC. Several hundred industry
representatives from the major music centers in LA, Nashville, and especially
New York will attend the music conference looking for talent to develop and sign
to a record contract. Hagood said,
“we need to focus all of our rehearsal sessions on readying ourselves for this
important performance.” By Chanz’ manager plans to send a personal invitation to all the
industry reps who will be attending the conference inviting them to come and
hear the vocal group’s showcase performance and then meet with the group
members afterwards. “This could
be By Chanz’ ticket to ride,”
said the group’s manager.
Last
year one of By Chanz’ songs, Beat of Your Heart, won an
honorable mention in the Grand Slam Songwriting Contest sponsored by Music
Connection magazine of LA. Frontwoman, Kelley Hagood won second place in
the vocal category of the Loudoun Arts Council’s 2001 Excellence in the Arts Awards competition.
In 2000 Hagood was awarded a silver medal in the James A. Bland Music
Scholarship Awards competition.
By Chanz recently performed for
several hundred children and their parents on the Town Green (Children’s)
Stage during the Leesburg Flower and
Garden Festival on April 21, 2001. The
night before they performed for the kids who attend the Sully Elementary CASA
program. In March
they appeared before a packed house at The Upper Room, a family-oriented
coffee house in Leesburg. By Chanz
also performed at First Night Leesburg
and at The Planet Club, Chantilly’s premiere teen night club in December 2000.
By Chanz was featured in a March 26, 2001 television news story on
Loudoun Channel 3 and on a Fairfax Channel 10 comedy show called The Nooz.
To learn
more about By Chanz and see
additional photographs, go to their web site at www.bychanz.com.