Tennessee Songwriters Week Competition held at Bonnie Kate Theatre, winners advance to second round

Published 4:28 pm Tuesday, February 8, 2022

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BY NIC MILLER
STAR STAFF
nic.miller@elizabethton.com

Performers took the stage Saturday at the Bonnie Kate Theatre in the first round of the 2022 Tennessee Songwriters Week Competition.

This was the second year the theatre hosted the event, and 20 performers participated.

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“In 2020, the Chamber of Commerce was in charge of everything and asked us to host the event. But this year, the state asked us directly to host the event and we of course accepted,” said John Huber, member of the Friends of the Bonnie Kate.

“It’s a great competition, and it helps the songwriters because they get a lot of exposure from this event,” Huber said. “It’s good for us and good for the songwriters, and it is a great competition with a nice gold carrot at the end if you’re the one.”

The songwriters performed original songs for the audience and the judges. Winners were Nathan Hardin, Sandra Lambert, Travis O’Quinn and Caleb Bailey. Alternate winners were Ron Thomas and Tom Stetler.

“From here, those winners will move on to the second round of the competition in Johnson City. After that round, the top finalists in the state will get to travel to Nashville for the final competition, where the winner will hopefully get picked up by an artist,” Huber said.

The second round of the competition is Feb. 22 at 7:30 p.m. inside The Down Home Electric Music Room, located at 300 West Main St. in Johnson City.

For more information on the upcoming round, visit https://visitjohnsoncitytn.com/event/tennessee-songwriters-week-showcase-johnson-city/.