On Friday, February 7, we held our fourth annual Babbie Mason Songwriting Competition that celebrated creativity and original music. During the morning, Babbie and her son, Chaz Mason, attended “The evening featured our six finalists who showcased their original compositions to Babbie and our panel of judges. Our finalists included Jeff Roley ’74, Laura Dickey ’93, AJ Stephenson, Artur Siimes, Anna McPherson, and Bradly Rainwater, with Bradly winning this year’s contest with his original piece Broken Hallelujah. Bradly also took home the audience choice prize as well.

The night not only highlighted our finalists, but community members were also treated to performances from Dr. Stephen Murphy ’98, the Gospel Choir, directed by Dr. J. Frederick Bland, and Babbie Mason ’78 herself. The audience members had the opportunity to give to the Babbie Mason Minority Music Scholarship, which helps current students pursue their musical aspirations at Spring Arbor University. If you would like to give to the Babbie Mason Minority Music Scholarship, you can do so here.

A huge thank you to Babbie Mason and the SAU Music Department for the work they put into hosting such an inspiring event that continues to celebrate and uplift music on campus.