POPLAR BLUFF-Country rockstar on the rise Candy Coburn, a Dexter High School graduate best known for the breast cancer awareness anthem "Pink Warrior," is celebrating the release of her forthcoming album this month at Rodgers Theatre.

Tickets are on sale for the Dec. 18 concert featuring brand new material from Coburn and a special Christmas music performance with the vocal backing of Poplar Bluff's own Palace of Praise choir.

"Because of her high energy, Candy's live show can be described as a female version of Garth Brooks,'" said Jim Hoyt, a member of the historic theater's board. "She played on 'Fox & Friends' last month and now she has chosen the Rodgers Theatre as the place to host her CD release party, for which we are honored."

 

Opening the set at 6:30 p.m. will be returning guest Maggie Thorn of Bloomfield, the grand prize winner of last year's Mid-South Fair Youth Talent Competition, the largest contest of its kind in the United States.

Thorn, 16, established her name yodeling, which she learned how to do from watching YouTube videos, she revealed. This past summer she performed on a hitherto unaired episode of "Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson," available for viewing on Thorn's Facebook fan page.

"Any time you're invited to sing is a great opportunity, especially with what they're doing at Rodgers, but being the opener for Candy Coburn is awesome," Thorn exclaimed. "She's been singing for a while now, has her own bus, she's doing shows, touring the U.S., promoting breast cancer awareness, and I'm just excited to meet her and see what her life is like."

Coburn, who presently resides in Springfield, began her music career three albums ago, but has big hopes to tango on top of the charts with "Lucky," released early on her website: www.candycoburn.com.

"Fans tell me my last record ['Rev It Up'] doesn't do my live show justice, and I think, 'Thanks for the feedback. I guess,'" said Coburn, laughing. "This record that has been pressed finally represents what I do live, which is where my passion's at, and I'm really proud of it."

She linked up with longtime producer Joe Scaife in Nashville, whose production credits go back as far as Billy Ray Cyrus' "Achy Breaky Heart," Coburn explained, and the pair has worked closely to create that stage energy in the studio.

"When you're recording, you're sitting in a box with nobody but yourself, and maybe an engineer and a producer," Coburn said. "The hardest part is going in there, determining what the motivation is, establishing the storyline in your head, pretending to sing to the [intended] person, and drumming all that up so it sounds authentic."

Coming in focused is essential, Coburn added, as her schedule will have featured 165 shows, upon completion of the Rodgers event.

As the celebrity ambassador for Susan G. Komen for the Cure, a foundation that has generated the world's largest source of nonprofit funds dedicated to the fight against breast cancer, Coburn has performed her 2009 hit in every single state to help raise money.

"I'm always speechless about how many amazing survivor stories are told to me," Coburn said. "I'm just a tiny part of such a great organization."

Tickets for Coburn's concert range from $7-$15, and will be available at the Greater Poplar Bluff Chamber of Commerce, The Bread Company, Myrtle's Place, Hays Music and all area Southern Bank branches. A portion of the proceeds goes to the Rodgers restoration fund.