How Sweet the Sound Talent Contest to Name 'Best Church Choir in Memphis' Taking Place at FedEx Forum on October 2

How Sweet the Sound Talent Contest to Name 'Best Church Choir in Memphis' Taking Place at FedEx Forum on October 2

-Verizon Wireless Announces Eight Regional Memphis Finalists and Award-Winning Gospel Artists Hosts and Judges Including Donald Lawrence, Marvin Sapp and Hezekiah Walker-

MEMPHIS, Tenn., Oct. 1 /PRNewswire/ -- Verizon Wireless announced today the Memphis-area semi-finalists in the search for the country's best church choir. Memphis-area choirs and their choir directors who have made it into the semi-final round of the Verizon Wireless' How Sweet The Sound(SM) national competition are:

   (Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080917/NYW137 )    Small Choirs (6-35 singers):    -- Mount Vernon Baptist Church (Memphis)   -- The Voices of Judah (Memphis)   -- Antioch Baptist Church - The Voices of Antioch (Memphis)   -- Christ Temple C.O.G.I.C. (Holly Springs, MS)     Large Choirs (36-100 singers):    -- Miracle Temple Ministries, Inc. (Memphis)   -- New Direction Christian Church (Memphis   -- Brown Missionary Baptist Church (Southaven, MS)   -- Vollintine Baptist Church (Memphis)     National Competition with Memphis Roots  

In an effort to celebrate the genre of gospel and church choir music, Verizon Wireless hosted the country's first church choir talent contest in Memphis titled How Sweet the Sound in 2007 with great success. Nine semifinalists were chosen from over 70 entrants to their sound publicly while raising funds for their congregation. Over 11,000 citizens attended the event.

Verizon Wireless decided to expand the How Sweet the Sound event in 2008 into ten additional cities (St. Louis, Atlanta, Chicago, Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, Memphis, Newark, Oakland, Philadelphia, St. Louis and Washington D.C.) Semifinalists in each city will perform live on-stage for the chance to win $10,000 for their congregation and the title of the 'Best Church Choir' in each city. Winners from each market will then compete in a national grand finale on Saturday, November 8 at the Phillips Arena in Atlanta for a cash prize of $25,000 and the title of the 'Best Church Choir in America.'

Award-Winning Gospel Artists Hosting and Judging

The Verizon Wireless How Sweet the Sound national finals are in Atlanta on November 8. The semi-finalist winners from 11 cities (including Memphis) will compete in the national grand finale. GRAMMY(R) - winning songwriter, producer arranger and music director, Donald Lawrence, will be the tour emcee at each of the 11 semi-final competitions and at the finale. Marvin Sapp, Hezekiah Walker and other gospel artists will join the competition as judges.

Tickets Available

The doors to FedEx Forum will open at 6:00 p.m. before the How Sweet the Sound competition begins at 7:30 p.m. on Oct. 2. Tickets can be purchased via Ticketmaster(R) or the FedEx Forum Box Office and are $7 for floor seats and $5 for upper level seats.

Bring Your No-Longer Used Phones for a Good Cause

Memphis gospel music fans are encouraged to bring their no-longer-used wireless phones, batteries and accessories to the How Sweet The Sound competition and donate them to the company's HopeLine(R) program. Proceeds from the HopeLine program are used to provide wireless phones and cash grants to local shelters and non-profit organizations that focus on domestic violence prevention and awareness. Collection booths are set-up at different locations throughout FedEx Forum.

Those who cannot make it to the Oct. 2 show can still donate to HopeLine by dropping off their used wireless phones any time of the year at all Verizon Wireless Communications Stores.

For more information about How Sweet The Sound, please log on to www.howsweetthesound.com, and for more information about Verizon Wireless, please visit www.verizonwireless.com.

About Verizon Wireless

Verizon Wireless operates the nation's most reliable wireless voice and data network, serving 68.7 million customers. Headquartered in Basking Ridge, N.J., with 70,000 employees nationwide, Verizon Wireless is a joint venture of Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) and Vodafone (NYSE and LSE: VOD). For more information, go to: www.verizonwireless.com. To preview and request broadcast-quality video footage and high-resolution stills of Verizon Wireless operations, log on to the Verizon Wireless Multimedia Library at www.verizonwireless.com/multimedia.

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Photo: NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080917/NYW137
AP Archive: http://photoarchive.ap.org/
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com

Source: Verizon Wireless

CONTACT: Sheryl Sellaway of Verizon Wireless, +1-678-339-5564,
Sheryl.Sellaway@VerizonWireless.com

Web site: http://www.howsweetthesound.com/
http://www.verizonwireless.com/

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Profile: International Entertainment