`Celebrated singer Jaci Velasquezwill take the stage at county fair`

By Sherris Moreira-Byers
Herald Writer

Singer Jaci Velasquez is a three-time Dove Award winner, which places her in pretty exclusive company.

She received the first of her Dove Awards, the Christian music version of the Grammy Awards, for Best New Artist of 1996. She won again for Best Song of the Year in 1997 for “On My Knees,” also on “Heavenly Place.”

However, it wasn’t all that long ago that she resembled many, many others. She was a young girl who wanted to be a singer.

“I knew when I was nine years old that I wanted to sing, and from that point on it kind of grew,” said the 19-year-old singer, who sang as a youngster with her father’s traveling Christian band and burst onto the contemporary Christian music charts as a 16-year-old.

“To not do it now would be like giving up my left arm or my right leg.”

Ms. Velasquez will sing at the Lawrence County Fair at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday. From 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. that day, she’ll make a public appearance at Grand Book & Bible, 206 E. Wallace Ave., New Castle, which is sponsoring her concert performance.

At the heart of her music, she said, is her relationship with Jesus Christ. She offers general advice to teens by saying, “You have to be strong; you have to know what you are and who you are through God — and if you do, you will succeed.”

Speaking to The Herald by phone Wednesday, Ms. Velasquez also offered a specific tip to young kids who share her dream of singing: “Sing wherever they’ll let you — in church, everywhere.” She, in fact, earned her break when she was asked to open for a Point of Grace concert in her hometown.

The release of her debut album, “Heavenly Place,” brought her immediate artistic success. A single from it, “If This World,” hit No. 1 on the Christian music charts. The album stayed in the Top 10 on Christian charts for several months.

She received the first of her Dove Awards, the Christian music version of the Grammy Awards, for Best New Artist of 1996. She won again for Best Song of the Year in 1997 for “On My Knees,” also on “Heavenly Place.”

She followed up her first album with her self-titled second album, which earned her Best Female Vocalist honors in 1998.

Both her albums have gone gold.

Ms. Velasquez acknowledges that she’s seen by many as a role model. But speaking honestly about the responsibility, she said, “Don’t look at me as a role model. I’ll disappoint you at one point. I’m only human.”

She does, however, take the responsibility seriously.

Espousing a commitment to abstinence, for example, Ms. Velasquez has been a spokesperson for the popular national campaign “True Love Waits.” She wears a “promise ring” signifying her stand. “I made that promise and it’s very, very important to me and my family,” she said. “It’s one of the most important commitments you’ll ever make — next to being a Christian. I’m saving myself for that one person meant for me.”

It may be a matter of semantics, but Ms. Velasquez said that instead of a role model, “I’d rather be seen as an inspiration, to encourage people to live out their dreams. I have people who are inspirations to me, such as my father and Amy Grant, and I try to pattern my life after them, but not in every way. Their inspiration helps me pursue my own goals.”

She is interested in theater and has participated in Broadway auditions. “My ideal is to be in Les Miserables’ someday,” she said with a laugh. She also plans on completing some correspondence courses to further her college education.

And she’s still expanding her singing horizons.

“Because of my Spanish heritage, I’m very interested in Spanish and Latin styles of music.” She is releasing her third album, Llegar a Ti (To Reach You), a Spanish language album, at the end of this month.

Asked about coming back to the fair for a second time, Ms. Velasquez expressed appreciation for the fans, as well as surprise.

“It was kind of interesting to me because it’s not a massively huge fair, but everyone knew the words to my music,” she said. “It seems like when it’s a smaller town, it’s like people appreciate it so much more. It’s really great.”

For more information about her Lawrence County Fair appearance, call 654-7745.

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Updated August 13, 1999
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LAWRENCE COUNTY

Celebrated singer Jaci Velasquez will take the stage at county fair

`Celebrated singer Jaci Velasquezwill take the stage at county fair`