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Saturday,
May 1, 2004
George’s big day
By Jennifer Vardy
In
her heart, Cheryl Lays fully believes that her son, George Canyon,
will be named the next Nashville Star tonight.
Canyon, better known at home in Pictou County as Fred Lays,
has spent the past eight weeks competing on the television reality
show Nashville Star.
After
surviving first votes from the judges and then a series of audience
votes, which saw the contestant with the fewest votes sent packing
from the Nashville Star house on Music Row, it all comes down
to tonight.
That's
when either Canyon, 33, funny guy Matt Lindahl and Brad Cotter
will be named the winner of a recording contract with Sony Music
Nashville will be named, based on last week's audience vote.
"I
think he'll win, in my heart, but you never know," Lays
said. "Anything can happen, it's all in God's hands now.
Even if he doesn't win, though, he's right where he wants to
be."
Even
if he's not the final man standing tonight, she said, millions
of people have been exposed to Canyon's music and there's still
the possibility that Sony – or another American record
label – could opt to sign him.
"On
the plus side of him not winning, there's the possibility that
he can negotiate his own contract," Lays said from her
hotel room in Nashville. "But either way, he has so many
fans in the U.S. right now. Everywhere we go, people know him
and they're all talking about how much they love him. They're
all saying what a kind heart he has. They have nothing but good
things to say about this Canadian."
Canyon,
who was the only Canadian to compete on the show, has been busy
over the past week in Sony's recording studio. All three of
the remaining contestants have recorded a potential debut single
for the record company and taking publicity photos over the
past few days in the hopes that they'll be named tonight's winner.
But
so far, said his mother, Canyon's been taking everything in
the stride.
"I
don't think he's nervous, but he's being very quiet," Lays
said. "He's very tired, it's been a long couple of weeks."
As
for Lays, she's already feeling jittery as the clock ticks down
for the finale.
"I'm
becoming spastic and jittery," Lays said. "It's going
to be electric tonight."
Both
Canadian and American viewers will have the opportunity to watch
the show live tonight at 11 p.m. on CMT.
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