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Wednesday, September 5, 2012 • page 19
From Sigma to stardom
Alumna competes forfinal spot on ‘The NEXT’ reality
show, enlists fan votes from alma mater
Kyra Gemberling
Design Editor
The long line of hopefiils waiting for
hours to audition for “American Idol”
has become synonymous wth an aver
age citizen’s attempt at stardom. But
for Elon alumna Jenny Leigh Freeman,
fame came knocking at her door.
The creators of CW’s “Ute NEXT,”
a singing competition TV show that
holds a nationwide search for undiscov
ered artists, sought Freeman out when
scouts were sent to Baltimore, one of six
cities to which “The NEXT” traveled.
And Freeman was an ideal candi
date for the show, because she has been
steadily working on a country music
singing career in Baltimore since gradu
ating from Elon in 2006.
Tire point is to find people who
are already on the brink of stardom and
give them the platform to get over the
hump,” Freeman said. “I’ve been book-
ing my own shows, seeing my own man
ager and writing my own music, so (the
talent scouts) recognized the hard work
Im doing and the show is helping me
out by providing national exposure.”
On top of television publicity, each
contestant is given a celebrity mentor
that visits tire contestant at their home
and coaches them throughout the show.
Lucidly for Freeman, she was given the
chance to work with John Rich of tlie
country band Big &, Rich, a once-in-
a-lifetime opportunity for an aspiring
country star.
Ive been a fan (of Big & Rich) ever
since I heard of them in college when
they did ‘Save a Horse (Ride a Cow-
hoy) , ’ she said. “It was a great honor to
work with John. He can write songs out
of the blue, plus he’s really creative, witty
and has so much star power.”
Freeman performed on the Bal
timore episode of “The NEXT” that
aired on Aug. 23, and will now compete
against contestants from Los Angeles,
Orlando, New York, Dallas and Chi
cago for a spot in the finals. A fan vote
episode on Sept. 20 wih determine who
advances, so Elon alumna Cindy Tew,
Class of 1977, has been working dili
gently to get the word out about Free
man’s TV success.
“Seeing Jenny’s performance on the
show blew my mind,” Tew said “That’s
why I’ve gotten behind this thing —
anyone should be motivated and excited
about this opportunity.”
Tew and Freeman are both sisters of
Sigma Sigma Sigma in addition to be
ing Elon alumni, so Tew said it’s only
naftiral for Elon and its Greek organiza
tions to want to help Freeman succeed
and gain publicity for Elon.
“Jenny is an inspiration to all aspir
ing artists,” Tew said. “She has already
made her peers, sorority sisters and Elon
proud of her. We should all support her
by' voting for her and help push her to
the finals. She is living proof that dreams
do come true.”
And Freeman hasn’t forgotten about
her time at Elon - in addition to being
in a sorority and playing on the club
women’s rubgy team, Freeman was a
member of the co-ed a cappeUa group
Twisted Measure for three years, which
she credits for teaching her a lot of what
she knows about music.
“Twisted Measure taught me a
ton about music, especially since I was
with people from all different states
and backgrounds coming together for
a shared love of music,” she said. “And
being in Tri-Sigma gave me a great sup
port system, so I feel like I had a really
well-rounded college experience.”
Freeman said Tew’s effort in spread
ing the word about the fan vote is a
prime example of the power of an Elon
support system.
As for Freeman’s plans after the
show, she wants to continue pursuing
music, whether she wins or not. And
since the show has allowed her to make
great connections, Freeman feels confi
dent about her fiiture as a professional
aitist.
“My ultimate goal is to tour the
world and have singing be my one and
only job,” Freeman said. “I’m jugg-ling a
lot like everyone else my age, but I dont
really care about havdng a ton of money.
I just want to be supported financially
wlfile doing what I love.”
Aiumna Jenny Leigh Freeman currently works full time in marketing for the athletic wear company Under
pursuing a career in country music since graduating Elon University with a degree in psychology in 2006.
PHOTO SUBMITTED
Armour, but she’s been
Freeman is featured in the Baltimore episode of “The Next” which airs at 9 p.m. Thursdays on the CW.