Screaming teens filled Central Park's Rumsey Playfield (the home of Central Park SummerStage) to hear pop singer Michelle Branch perform at Pantene's second annual summer sing-off for up-and-coming female talent. The free concert brought five national finalists to the stage to showcase their singing and songwriting skills and vie for a demo recording deal from Atlantic Records.
Queen Latifah served as M.C. of the event (which had the same look and feel as last year's concert), and led the young audience through performances by last year's winner, Libbie Schrader, and pop duo M2M, before the finalists took to the stage to perform their original songs. Branch ended the concert with an upbeat set of her radio hits.
The event's primary producer, Alliance, hired Tom Schwinn Designs to create multi-colored stage backdrops and Speed of Sound to coordinate the sound system. During the performances, lighting designer Rick Siegel lit the stage with a barage of hues from blue to fuschia to yellow.
A group of celebrity judges wrangled by Overland Entertainment, including The View's Lisa Ling, The Soprano's Jamie-Lynn Sigler and vocalist Willa Ford, determined the winner: 18-year-old Melissa Bathory.
Queen Latifah served as M.C. of the event (which had the same look and feel as last year's concert), and led the young audience through performances by last year's winner, Libbie Schrader, and pop duo M2M, before the finalists took to the stage to perform their original songs. Branch ended the concert with an upbeat set of her radio hits.
The event's primary producer, Alliance, hired Tom Schwinn Designs to create multi-colored stage backdrops and Speed of Sound to coordinate the sound system. During the performances, lighting designer Rick Siegel lit the stage with a barage of hues from blue to fuschia to yellow.
A group of celebrity judges wrangled by Overland Entertainment, including The View's Lisa Ling, The Soprano's Jamie-Lynn Sigler and vocalist Willa Ford, determined the winner: 18-year-old Melissa Bathory.
Several vendors, including Seventeen, Delia's, FYE and Much Music, set up booths around the field to offer products and promo materials to the young attendees before and during the concert.
--Jill Musguire
Read our coverage of last year's event...
Pop singer Michelle Branch performed for a crowd of teens at the Pantene Pro-Voice contest at Rumsey Playfield in Central Park.
Overland Entertainment wrangled a group of celebrity judges, which included The View's Lisa Ling, The Soprano's Jamie-Lynn Sigler and vocalist Willa Ford.
Tom Schwinn Designs created multi-colored stage backdrops and lighting designer Rick Siegel lit them with a barage of hues during the performances.
Pop duo M2M performed early in the night's lineup.
