Folgers(R) Announces Semi-Finalists in 'The Best Part of Wakin' Up(TM)' Jingle Contest

ORRVILLE, Ohio, March 29 /PRNewswire/ -- Folgers® today announced the top ten semi-finalists in the first-ever "The Best Part of Wakin' Up™" Jingle Contest.  Starting today, consumers are invited to log on to www.bestpartofwakinup.com to view and vote for the best jingle submission and be entered into the Celebrate 25 Years of The Best Part of Wakin' Up Promotion for a chance to win a Grand Prize of $10,000 and daily $25 iTunes® Gift Card prizes.

Earlier this year, Folgers teamed up with one of the nation's most well-known judges of musical talent – multi-award winning songstress Kara DioGuardi – to invite Americans to submit their own original performance of the iconic "The Best Part of Wakin' Up" jingle. Talented musicians from across the country shared their original renditions of the jingle and now it is up to America to help select the top five that will move on to the live judging event in New York City.  After an initial round of judging, the top ten semi-finalists are:

Chase H. from Wrightsville Beach, NC

Amanda L. from Charleston, SC

Larry S., Sally S. and Rachel K. from Washington, MO

Ethan T., Dan C., Landon L. and Jenny S. from Missoula, MT

Helena M. and Maria M. from Flemington, NJ

Rahegene C. from Dallas, TX

Troy K. and Wesley W. from Mount Juliet, TN

Brent M. from Athens, AL

Zachary B. from Oro Valley, AZ

Kurtis P. and Evan S. from Antioch, TN

"The Folgers 'The Best Part of Wakin' Up' jingle has been inspiring people for 25 years," said DioGuardi. "For the semi-finalists to make the jingle their own, they really needed to find something inspirational and truthful to pour into their music. I'm excited to be a judge and hear first-hand what the semi-finalists have composed."  

The ten semi-finalist entries will be available on www.bestpartofwakinup.com through April 21, 2010.  The top five entries will be named finalists and head to New York City to perform their version of the jingle, live, in front of Kara DioGuardi and a panel of judges in June 2010.  The winning finalist will win $25,000 and a chance for the winning jingle to appear in a future commercial.  

"We are thrilled to see how all the entrants added their creativity and personal touches to the iconic Folgers jingle," said Maribeth Badertscher, Vice President, Corporate Communications, The J.M. Smucker Company. "We look forward to the results of the online vote, and hearing America's favorite musicians perform live in New York City."

About the contest

From January 19 through February 28, 2010, hundreds of creative and talented musicians submitted video entries on www.bestpartofwakinup.com.  Qualified entries underwent an initial round of judging based on creativity/originality, musical performance, and adherence to creative assignment and were then narrowed down to a group of ten semi-finalists.  

The top five finalists will be determined based on points awarded from both the preliminary judging round and online vote totals.  Finalists will participate in a live judging event in New York City in June 2010.  The grand prize winner will be determined by a qualified panel of judges and will be awarded $25,000 and a chance for the winning jingle to appear in a future Folgers commercial.

About the Celebrate 25 Years of The Best Part of Wakin' Up Promotion

Each day 25 First Prize Winners will be selected in a random drawing among all eligible entries to each win a $25 iTunes® Gift Card. A total of 625 First Prizes will be awarded. All eligible entries received in each daily random drawing will be combined and one Grand Prize Winning Entry will be selected to receive $10,000. The Grand Prize Drawing will be conducted on or about April 22, 2010. For Official Rules and complete details visit www.bestpartofwakinup.com.  Open to legal residents of the 50 United States and D.C., 18 years of age and older.  Void outside of the United States and where prohibited.

iTunes is a registered trademark of Apple Inc. which is not a participant in or sponsor of this Promotion.

About The J.M. Smucker Company

For more than 100 years, The J.M. Smucker Company has been committed to offering consumers quality products that help families create memorable mealtime moments.  Today, Smucker is the leading marketer and manufacturer of fruit spreads, retail packaged coffee, peanut butter, shortening and oils, ice cream toppings, sweetened condensed milk, and health and natural foods beverages in North America. Its family of brands includes Smucker's®, Folgers®, Dunkin' Donuts®, Jif®, Crisco®, Pillsbury®, Eagle Brand®, R.W. Knudsen Family®, Hungry Jack®, White Lily® and Martha White® in the United States, along with Robin Hood®, Five Roses®, Carnation®, Europe's Best® and Bick's® in Canada. The Company remains rooted in the Basic Beliefs of Quality, People, Ethics, Growth and Independence established by its founder and namesake more than a century ago. The Company has appeared on FORTUNE Magazine's list of the 100 Best Companies to Work For in the United States 11 times, ranking number one in 2004. For more information about the Company, visit www.smuckers.com.

The J. M. Smucker Company is the owner of all trademarks, except Pillsbury is a trademark of The Pillsbury Company, LLC, used under license; Carnation is a trademark of Societe des Produits Nestle S.A., used under license; and Dunkin' Donuts is a registered trademark of DD IP Holder LLC used under license.

SOURCE The J.M. Smucker Company