THE VOICE OF CHICAGO'S GAY, LESBIAN, BI, TRANS AND QUEER COMMUNITY SINCE 1985

CHICAGO —Windy City Media Group along with Miller Lite and Skyy Vodka present the seventh annual Windy City Gay Idol FINALS at Sidetrack, 3349 N. Halsted on Sat., June 13 with doors opening at 1pm and the show starting at 4pm. Singers Jason Antone and Suzanne Palmer will also perform at the finals.

After nine preliminary competitions the crowning of Chicago's best amateur gay and lesbian singer, the 2009 Windy City Gay Idol, is almost here. Come be a part of the fun as the audience votes for the winner.

Twelve contestants have survived after three months of competition as the best and most popular singers representing local bars across Chicago ( Star Gaze, Crew, Mary's Attic, Jackhammer, @mosphere, Sofo, Spin, and Roscoe's ) . The singers will compete for audience votes at the Finals to become the 2009 Windy City Gay Idol winning $1000 cash, a pair of American Airlines tickets, Skyy Vodka merchandise and product, an Ipod touch compliments of Miller Lite, tickets to Broadway in Chicago, and a invitation to sing at Toronto's Halloweek street festival.

Audience members at the event can also be big winners. Someone will win a trip for two to Toronto ( including airfare on American Airlines, 3-night stay at Marriott Bloor-Yorkville, Toronto City Passes, dinners and more. ) Plus others will win tickets to Ravinia, Broadway in Chicago, DVD new releases, and more.

Guest performances will entertain the audiences throughout the competition as well. Jason Antone will launch his new CD at IDOL, dance diva Suzanne Palmer will have everyone dancing and the reigning 2008 Windy City Gay Idol Cori Calderon sings on the IDOL stage one more time.

Premium sponsors include Miller Lite and Skyy Vodka. Other sponsors: American Airlines, Broadway in Chicago, Creaoke, Ravinia, and WCPT AM & FM: Chicago's Progressive Talk and Windy City Media Group.

There is a $10 cover at the Finals at Sidetrack. All audience members will receive a drink ticket and a chance to win prizes including a trip for two to Toronto.

Windy City Gay Idol FINALS:

Sat., June 13 Sidetrack, 3349 N. Halsted, 1pm doors, 4pm start.

Check www.windycitymediagroup.com for details and rules.

For more information or photos, contact Cynthia Holmes 773-871-7610 x 301 or via email at cynthia@windycitymediagroup.com . Complete rules and regulations available at www.WindyCityMediaGroup.com

GUEST Performer BIOS

JASON ANTONE

On June 9th 2009, JASON ANTONE celebrates his debut full-length studio album "Start To Move" co-written and produced by Willie Lewis ( Astralwerks, Jive ) , releasing on Chickie Records. A collection of melody-driven pop electronica, this new album is lyrical and rhythmic movement in every sense. Jason burst onto the scene in 2006 with the official release of self-penned dance single "With You". In 2007, Jason released "Be Free" ( co-written with the incredible Georgie Porgie ) followed by the 2008 single "Love's Gonna Lead You Back" which instantly hit the iTunes Dance Top 10 List. Both tracks made the Top 25 on the Billboard Club Charts. The released singles includes remixes by Manny Lehman, Josh Harris, Peter Barona and more. The videos for these singles were picked up by MTV Networks' Logo Channel. A Chicago native, Jason started playing piano at three years old, moved on to the violin, saxophone and then back to the piano. Jason attended DePaul University for Vocal Studies and Music Management. Jason's music can be found on iTunes, PerfectBeat.com and retail nationwide. For more visit www.jasonantone.com

SUZANNE PALMER

" ( One of ) the most influential vocalists in the garage universe:...Suzanne Palmer." THE VILLAGE VOICE

Suzanne Palmer has stunned crowds internationally with her spirited, gospel-inflected performances.

Equally at home singing r&b, gospel, house, pop and jazz, Palmer is the daughter of a jazz pianist from Chicago's south side. Earth, Wind and Fire's Maurice White signed her to a solo recording project. Palmer toured Europe and tore down the house on New York's nationally televised "Show Time at the Apollo." In Poland, at the prestigious Sopot International Pop Festival, she competed against singers from sixteen countries to win the Best Solo Vocalist award. She appeared on "The Oprah Winfrey Show," singing with Gloria Estefan on her 1996 Olympic Games anthem, "Reach."

In 1997, after signing to the Twisted America/MCA label, she began her fruitful artistic partnership with producer/DJ Peter Rauhofer, as a featured vocalist on the Club 69 album, "Style." The album yielded three hit singles for Suzanne, "Much Better," "Alright," and "Muscles," and firmly established her as a major star in the club music scene. In 1998 Suzanne began writing and recording at the Vienna studio of production team Beat 4 Feet creating inspirational house anthem "Stand Up!" and the classic, disco-drenched "It's My Life" and "The Rhythm Goes On." In 2001 Suzanne reunited with producer/DJ Peter Rauhofer to record "Hide U" for Peter's own Star 69 label. It broke into the Billboard Club Play chart's top 5. 2002 saw the release of her Rauhofer-produced house hit, "Show Me," as well as her collaboration with master trance DJ Tiesto, the European breakout smash, "643/Love's On Fire."

In 2005 Suzanne celebrated the release of her first full length cd for Star 69, entitled "Home." Executive producer Rauhofer teamed her up with some of the most creative and cutting edge producers, writers, and remixers around, including Anthony Acid, Peter Bailey, Beat Hustlerz, Blue Room, Dezrok, Cevin Fisher, Fred Jorio, Eric Kupper, Angel Moraes, David Morales and Orange Factory. Most recently, Suzanne's new project with DJ/producer Bill Bennett, resulted in the release of their remake of the classic, "Fame," along with Suzanne's very first music video. For more visit www.suzannepalmer.com

Windy City Media Group produces Windy City Times, Nightspots, OUT! Resource Guide, Identity online, WindyCityQueercast.com and QueerTVNetwork.com . Windy City Media Group is also the producer of these annual events: Windy City Gay Idol, 30 Under 30 and the Windy City Times Theater Series. To download all of the products visit www.windycitymediagroup.com . Send questions to publisher@windycitymediagroup.com or call ( 773 ) 871-7610.