The sixth annual KHTS Country Showdown returned to Santa Clarita over the weekend with a block party where four bands competed to move a step closer to qualifying for the national showdown in Nashville, Tennessee and compete there for a prize of $100,000.
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Hosting the showdown were Savannah Burrows, last year’s Santa Clarita contestant and Carl Goldman, co-owner of KHTS.
“I wish all the performers good luck,” said Burrows before the show started.
Each artist competing emphasized that they were on stage to share their passion for country music.
“I just felt that country music rang a little more true than singing about death and beating people up,” said Jeff Alan, one of the guitarists for the winning band, Sweet Mischief, explaining why he diverged from playing heavy metal music to country.
The group is still relatively new, playing shows for just over four months after meeting through a Craigslist ad. They are based in the Inland Empire but traveled to Santa Clarita for the competition.
“We drove a little ways,” said Micah Justice, the lead singer for Sweet Mischief. “But it was absolutely worth it, and this a beautiful place with beautiful people.”
KHTS is competing against 450 other radio stations to send local talent to the final leg of the competition in Nashville, Tennessee. Santa Clarita’s only local radio station has sent contestants to the finals four out of the five years they have entered the competition.
“The showdown has brought incredible talent to Santa Clarita,” KHTS co-owner Carl Goldman said. “And we’re just the first stage of the national contest.”
Sweet Mischief, now that they have won the local competition, will have to compete at a regional competition to qualify for the Nashville competition.
I have heard this band play. These guys are awesome!
It was such an honor to be apart of the event. Thank you again for your dedication to local and little people! Sweet Mischief had a blast.
In case anyone was interested in checking out more about Sweet Mischief our website is https://sweetmischiefband.com/