Country musician Jackie Lawson will give a free concert at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College on Tuesday, Oct, 14. Lawson, who has opened for acts like Sugarland and Shenandoah, will perform from 9 to 10:30 p.m. in the campus Lodge, which is located behind Providence Center at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods.

Lawson has an expressive voice, soulful and strong, gentle and innocent, kickin’ and down-home. It’s a unique voice that stirs the heart, leads the imagination, and brings the songs to life. On stage, she has a remarkable way of making her audiences feel at ease, yet entertained, with a fiery-sweet attitude and energetic presence that won’t quickly be forgotten.

"If I was to sum up my music, I’d say it’s one crazy blonde with a high-energy rock show dumped in a country bucket,” Lawson said on her website.

At age 17, the Charleston, Ill., native, flew to Argentina for a year as a Rotary Youth Exchange student and returned home fluent in Spanish and singing up a storm. It was during this time Jackie unknowingly began nurturing and creating her own individual style of singing.

In October of 2002, she drove up to Detroit for her first audition ever, for the second season of American Idol. She passed two auditions before meeting Simon, Paula, and Randy in the third audition. Unanimously, they told her that she had a good voice, but wasn’t quite what they were looking for on the show at that time.

Lawson has since opened for Buddy Jewel, Josh Gracin, Sugarland, Craig Morgan, Restless Heart, Shenandoah, and Danielle Peck. She's a member of the Illinois Country Music Association, Country Music Association, American Society of Composers Authors and Publishers, Nashville Songwriters Association International, and a graduate from Eastern Illinois University with a bachelor’s degree in business accounting. She has competed in numerous Colgate Country Showdowns from Wisconsin, Indiana, Missouri, Kentucky, and Illinois, and she's competed at the State level for Illinois and Indiana.

In August 2005, a locally successful dance rock and blues band “Black N Blues” asked Lawson to join up as lead vocalist. She accepted on the condition that they would back up her country shows when spring rolled around. It was a perfect match! Black N Blue dropped the “s” and focused on popular rock tunes of the 70s, 80s, 90s and today. When the time came for country music, an alias band was created under the name “Hillbilly Rockstars.” Both bands skyrocketed in popularity and are constantly touring the Midwest.

In September 2005, Lawson released her debut CD singles, “A Little Hope” and “Waiting,” both original works. “A Little Hope” was released independently and helped to raise more than $300 for the American Cancer Society.

Currently, Lawson is promoting her first full album “Crazy Blonde,” which she released in March 2007. The new album, produced my Mike Jones and Jackie, consists of 10 previously unreleased tracks. Four of these — “Don't Let Me Love You,” “Stranger,” “When You're Here,” and “Give Me a Break (Busy, Busy, Busy)” — were written by Lawson. She continues to tour and writes music everywhere she goes.

“I am so excited about the way things have been working out for me,” she said on her website. “So much has happened for me these last five years, and I’m a huge believer that everything happens for a reason.”

For Lawson, every positive break in the pursuit of her dream has been the result of some small minute occurrence that might normally have gone unnoticed.

“I paid to sing in a contest in Paducah, Ky., in 2004 and met my producer (Mike Jones) there,” she said. “He's helped me immeasurably with my studio performance. I started singing in clubs with Black N Blue to help make ends meet. That experience has helped me tremendously to develop my voice and my live performance. And I can't begin to describe the things that have inspired and developed my songwriting. I can see looking back that God has a plan, and I think He’s been smiling on me.”

For more information about Lawson’s performance at Saint Mary-of-the-Woods College, contact Jeff Malloy, SMWC director of campus life, at 812-535-5219 or jmalloy@smwc.edu. More information on Lawson can be found online at www.jackielawsonmusic.com.