Chickaloon musician releases second single after winning national contest in 2019

WASILLA — Chickaloon musician Rhoda Grace won Rixon Entertainment Group’s national Sing Your Song contest in October of 2019, gaining many opportunities, namely the chance to record two professional quality singles with a Dove Award and Grammy Award winning producer.

Grace won by 670 votes with her original song “Love Me Back to You.” That song was released earlier this month and her second single, “Paxton’s Song” just came out.

“It’s been a real blessing,” Grace said.

Grace flew to Nashville, Tennessee, to record her singles in January. She’s currently working to promote her singles over radio stations, churches, social media, and other platforms across the country.

She said that she plans to do a lot of online promotion, especially with COVID-19 social distancing measures still in place.

After all these accomplishments, Grace is eager to keep making music.

She said that the whole process gave her a major boost in confidence, giving her the courage to finally quit her conventional job and make music her new full time job.

“It’s like I spent my whole life saying music is just a side thing… and people actually want to listen to it,” Grace said.

Grace has been playing and writing music since she was 11 years old.

The self-taught mother of five primarily plays Christian music with a country twang. She said that her relationship with God and music has always been closely intertwined.

“It’s not just music to me. It’s ministry,” Grace said.

The contest called for video submissions with a focus on Christian and country music. Grace said that entrants could record cover songs but were encouraged to submit their original works.

This is Grace’s first big break. She said this experience has connected her to numerous musicians and producers across the country, who in turn, keep spreading the word and expressing interest to work with her in the future.

Prior to this national contest, her first real dive into musical competition was right here in the Valley at the Alaska State Fair’s Alaska’s Got Talent contest in 2017.

“It has come a long way since that day,” Grace said.

Grace said the sheer amount of support from Alaskans during the contest in 2019 was remarkable, noting that people with Rixon Entertainment Group even remarked on how much support she was getting from her community.

“The response has been huge. It just blows my mind that people are so excited,” Grace said. “They invested a lot, so I have to do my part.”

Grace’s songs are available on all major streaming platforms like iTunes, Spotify and YouTube. For more information, email info@rhodamusic.com.

Her official Facebook artist page can be found under the tag “@rhodamusicofficial” or by typing her name in the search bar.

To hear her newest single, visit sl.onerpm.com/9597040420?fbclid=IwAR06-iLctIomI4PewtFY 6pum9pHlPfb_02FV374c7phuDaDlBrsuWjYwk-c

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman reporter Jacob Mann at jacob.mann@frontiersman.com