11 Sept 2010 
The Guardian, Charlottetown, PEI

Island singer-songwriter wins Internet contest 
	
A Charlottetown singer-songwriter is realizing his dream. 

Kevin MacKay is the grand prize winner in Citytv’s Think You’ve Got Talent Canada, an Internet contest based on votes that has been running for the past few months. 

“It’s every musician’s dream to get noticed on a national level. I am so encouraged by the response that I received,” says MacKay who got the word that he had won while watching America’s Got Talent on TV last week. 

“Citytv aired my video during a commercial break. It was very cool. Instantly people were congratulating me on Facebook,” says MacKay, during an interview in Ontario, where he now resides. 
The contest invites Canadians to submit a video of an original talent. MacKay’s winning song, Peeka-boo, which speaks about children who are growing too fast, received the most online votes. 
“ Winning this contest tells me that I should keep writing and recording songs and play them live,” says MacKay, who plans to release a song on YouTube soon about losing his brother in a hit and run accident. 

As the grand prize, he has won a trip-for-two to Los Angeles for a live taping of NBC’s America’s Got Talent. Now as he waits to go to the finale on Sept. 15, he’s counting his blessings. 
“It comes at a good time in my life. I am currently struggling to find work in the counselling field in Ontario. And winning this contest has given me new hope for my music career as well. I would really like to do music for a living,” he says. 

One of his blessings is the support that he’s received from people. 
“I am so encouraged that fellow Islanders along with the rest of Canada got behind my video and voted it to number one. I want to express my sincere gratitude to each person who voted — thank you.” says MacKay.
 
 
For more information on this musician, go to www.KevinMacKay.net or myspace.com/KevinMacKayOnline.