Grand Forks teenager competes for Merritt Mountain Music Festival

Amanda Thate attended the Merritt Mountain Music Festival at the age of 13. Thate was "star-struck" when she saw Reba McEntire on stage, now she dreams about singing on the same stage as her idol. — Photo courtesy Amanda Thate

Amanda Thate, a country singer from Grand Forks, is competing in the Fan's Choice Competition 2012 for a performance spot at the annual Merritt Mountain Music Festival.

Thate, 18, is one of five competitors in the Fan's Choice Competition and she is eager to see the results. You can help her by voting for Thate until 2 p.m. on March 30, 2012. You can vote on Facebook, the Merritt Mountain Music Festival website or find the link on Thate’s personal website.

“This year, they’re trying to bring in all-Canadian country stars. They have the big stars, like Gord Bamford and Jerry Allen, and then they have a lot of local talent that only 50 per cent of people have ever heard of,” said Thate. “So you know, it’s really cool that Merritt’s giving us all a try.”

Who is Amanda Thate?

Amanda Thate sang on stage for the first time at the age of one, but her love for guitar flourished after she turned 14 years old.

“My grandma plays guitar and I wanted her to teach me a few chords to surprise my family with it, so one Christmas we did that,” said Thate. “On Christmas Eve I surprised my mom and my parents by playing one song with just the few chords that she told me, and after that my family just all loved it. They loved that I could play guitar.”

Afterwards, Thate learned the rest of the chords off of the Internet, and started singing songs written by her mother, Monica Thate. She performed monthly at church services and made regular trips with jazz and concert bands during high school. Thate said that the community of Grand Forks was an incredibly nurturing place to pursue music.

Production

At the age of 17, Thate independently recorded her debut album, I’ll Meet You, and her success skyrocketed from there.

“In the last four years it’s really taken off,” said Thate. “My mom is my main songwriter—she’s great at it. I do a lot of her songs in concert and my next album that’s coming out on May 23rd, 2012—almost all the songs are going to be written by my mom. She has a big book and we kind of work as a team.”

Thate writes her own songs too, but she isn’t ready to release them yet. Meanwhile, she won a contest called The Next Step through KBS Radio and Kootenay Concert Connections.  The recognition she received from the contest allowed her to go on a Canadian tour with Roy Clark to perform as his opening act.

Last year, Thate travelled to Nashville to work with music producer Tom Jackson, where she learned a lot about the music business.

“I was talking to lots of people and they said everybody comes to Nashville and it’s so hard to get started here—there’s just so much competition,” said Thate. “Another way of doing it is by staying in your own region—staying in the Kootenays or staying in the Okanagan or wherever you’re from, building a fan base and when you reach a certain level you can do some work in Nashville. It was really neat advice.”

Thate is actively pursuing a full-time bachelor of social work degree at the University of the Fraser Valley in Abbotsford. She recognizes the importance of education and is currently completing her first year of classes.

“There’s two reasons,” said Thate. “One is that you can’t really ever trust the music industry and the other reason is because I want to tell my kids someday that even though I went for my dream, I still have a university degree.”

Upcoming performances

May 23—Gord Bamford 2012 Canadian Tour, Is It Friday Yet?, in Cranbrook at the Key City Theatre at 7:30 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at: 250-426-7006

May 24—Gord Bamford 2012 Canadian Tour, Is It Friday Yet?, at the Charles Bailey Theatre at 7:30 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at: 866-368-9669

July 6—Okanagan Pro Rodeo and Festival in Kelowna at 7:00 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at the door.