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The Big Wake Up With Don Chase and Sarah

The Big Wake Up With Don Chase and Sarah

The Big Wake Up With Don Chase and Sarah

82nd All American Chorus Makes ‘America’s Got Talent’ Finals

Author Don Chase and Brandon Plotnick
Simon Cowell with the 82nd Airborne Division Chorus.

Another performance, and another great for the 82nd Airborne Division All American Chorus from Fort Liberty, as they have reached the finals of “America’s Got Talent.”

The 82nd Chorus advanced through the Qualifiers round, after an incredible performance of “I Am Here” from Pink.

You know, you can’t live in this country, and be at home in this country and part of what we are and where we are, and not love what you just did,” judge Howie Mandel said. “It was so perfect – even though it’s a Pink song – we are here, because you are here. Without you, we couldn’t do what we’re doing. We wouldn’t have the freedom. We wouldn’t have the peace. We wouldn’t have the safety. I can’t thank you enough – for more than the performance – just for being here.”

The result means they’ll have a shot at this year’s title, which will be awarded next week. The 2-hour finale competition is on Tuesday, September 26 at 9 p.m. on NBC, and the results will be a 2-hour show on Wednesday, September 27 at 9 p.m. on NBC.

“Thank you for not doing an obvious song, I mean this is a Pink song, that you turned around with a perfect lyric,” judge Simon Cowell said after the group got a standing ovation during Tuesday night’s show, which was recapped Wednesday. “And it was fun, and it was emotive. For me, this was a moment. You are one of my favorite acts this year.”

As we reported during the audition rounds, the Chorus was confident about how they could do this season. Cowell asked the group what their “big dream in coming on the show” was and Staff Sgt. Marcus Gilbert told him directly, “We are here to win.”

And win they are doing so far. Wednesday night’s results placed them in the final 11.

“It was fun. It was uplifting. It was perfect,” judge Sofia Vergara said. “You guys sound great. I think this act was better than the audition.”

“Well we always see you at attention, so it was nice to see you at ease,” judge Heidi Klum said. “You were having fun, dancing, singing. I loved it. I also hoped America loved it.”

Don Chase is living out his dreams, anchoring The Big Wake-Up with Don Chase & Sarah weekday mornings on KML. With over 35 years with Beasley Media, Don believes that the best is yet to come. The unofficial Mayor of Fayetteville radio, Don Chase writes about Fayetteville and North Carolina news, as well as entertaining perspectives on music, culture and more.

6 Fall Songs to Celebrate This Glorious Time of the Year

There’s not much that beats the weather of the fall, and that makes it the perfect time to put together a fall songs playlist.

In 2023, it seems that you can easily find a poll or a study for just about any topic that you can imagine. I recently took the chance to do my own informal survey. My main question was, “if you could pick one season, which would it be?” I asked a dozen people I know and surprisingly nine gave the same answer. Fall or Autumn. My secondary question was, “why Fall?” I’ll bet you can guess the most popular answer. Cooler weather. After the sweltering Summer we experienced, that answer did not surprise me.

For me personally, I love the newness of the Spring season but I might be leaning towards joining those that love Fall the most. One of my favorite things and also one of my wife Debbie’s favorite things about Fall are the most beautiful sunsets of the year. I don’t think there’s anything any more gorgeous than a bright yellow-orange sky mixed with blue, red and pink during an afternoon sunset.

Another Fall favorite for me would be on a crisp Saturday or Sunday morning to get out of bed early, make that first cup of coffee, slip on a light sweater or jacket, and head outside. Then as the sun is starting to rise, enjoy the birds singing and that special moment in time. The sound and the feeling of peace and stillness.

I got to thinking the other day, why not make a playlist of songs about the season of Fall? And I did just that.

Now, I must confess. I love to get up early but I don’t plan to be up this Saturday morning at 2:50 am celebrating the arrival of Fall.

One other thing. I love the crunch of the leaves as I walk along the nature trails in one of the many fantastic parks in our area.

Thank you very much for checking out my playlist of Fall songs below. Enjoy!

  • Kenny Chesney "The Boys of Fall"

    Along with the BIG 957 team, I remember a few chuckles when we began playing “The Boys of Fall” in the middle of July. Later on during that hot Summer, a football coach reminded me that the boys of fall were deep into football practice. From the album “Hemingway’s Whiskey,” enjoy this 2010 number one Country song “The Boys of Fall” by Kenny Chesney.

  • George Strait "The Chill of An Early Fall"

    Let me take you back 32 years to the year 1991. “The Chill of an Early Fall” was the title of George Strait’s eleventh album. “The Chill of an Early Fall” is one of the few songs that failed to reach number one for George. Speaking of number one songs, do you know that George Strait has more chart-toppers than anyone else? With sixty number ones, it’s no wonder why they call him the King of Country Music.

  • Zac Brown Band "Colder Weather"

    Just like George Strait’s “The Chill of an Early Fall,” “Colder Weather” was the name of the album and single for the Zac Brown Band. The entire Zac Brown Band is credited with writing this number one song but co-writer Wyatt Durrette adds a great story about how the song came about. He says he was really hitting it off with a young lady from Kansas City but things went South when she started pushing him to slow down. At that point, Wyatt says he and the band were starting to get some traction and slowing down was not an option.

  • Luke Bryan "Harvest Time"

    Let’s begin with congratulations to Leesville, Georgia’s Luke Bryan. Over the last week or so, Luke celebrated his 30th number one Country song. Fans of Luke’s know that he grew up on a farm. From 2022, take a listen to “Harvest Time” by Luke Bryan.

  • Earth Wind and Fire "September"

    I mentioned the words “take you back” earlier. But now, let’s go old school to the year 1978 and the Top 40 smash that packed dance floors then and now. It’s not often that a song gets picked by the National Library of Congress National Recording Registry but “September” did for Earth Wind and Fire. It still surprises me that “September” only reached number 8 on the Pop chart. However, on the R&B chart, it did go to number one.

  • Van Morrison "Autumn Song"

    From the Van Morrison lyrics page, “Little stroll past the house on the hill, Some more coal on the fire, it’d do well, And in a week or two will be Halloween, Set the page and the stage for the scene.” Go back with me to August of 1973 and a classic that always make my list of favorite songs about Fall.

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Author Don Chase and Brandon Plotnick
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