Nick Jonas Asks for America's Help to Select the First-Ever Quaker Chewy Superstar

CHICAGO, Aug. 30, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Voting for the next young singing superstar has officially begun!  After narrowing it down to five finalists, the Grand Prize winner in the Quaker Chewy Superstar Contest will be selected by America's online voting tallies – with the Grand Prize winner recording a song produced by Nick Jonas, appearing in an online music video, entering into a management agreement with Jonas Group LLC and receiving $5,000 in cash.

"I want to thank everyone who entered the Quaker Chewy Superstar Search.  I've had so much fun hearing all the young talent these past two months, there's no doubt that there are a lot of talented young singers across America," said Nick Jonas.  "We've narrowed down the list to five finalists, and now I'm leaving it in the hands of America to choose.  I can't wait to hit the studio with the Grand Prize winner."

The summer-long singing competition kicked off on June 8 and continued through August 5 at www.ChewySuperstar.com.  In addition, a one-of-a-kind Mobile Recording Studio spent eight weeks traveling across the country – hitting both coasts and more than a dozen spots in between – filming video submissions for parents of their kids ages 8-14.

Five finalists have been selected based on their stellar vocal performances, performance aesthetics and showmanship. Starting today and for the next two weeks through September 9, America can cast their vote for a Grand Prize winner.

Meet the Five Finalists and see their video performance!  

Allison, Age 13, Grand Bay, AL

Gabrielle, Age 14, Land O'Lakes, FL

Ashley, Age 13, Katy, TX

Victoria, Age 12, Sarasota, FL

Mac, Age 14, Sea Cliff, NY

People 13 years of age and older can visit www.ChewySuperstar.com to view the finalists' videos and cast their vote for a winner.  

"We received over 4,000 entries to the Quaker Chewy Superstar Search contest and were blown away by all of the talented kids out there," said Bill Fiely, director of Quaker Snack Bars.  "We were also excited to get the chance to partner with Little Kids Rock. Through our donation, Little Kids Rock will help support music education for kids across America."

As the only national nonprofit, rock and pop-oriented music program, Little Kids Rock focuses on ensuring every student has an opportunity to experience music education by supplying teachers with free training, curriculum and musical instruments for the classroom.

The millions of parents whose kids count themselves as Nick Jonas fans also have another option for feeling the love from the superstar.  Quaker Chewy has launched a new promotion at www.ChewySuperstar.com/nickgreetz, where one can enter a special on-pack code allowing a customized greeting to be sent from Nick Jonas to friends and family.  

About The Quaker Oats Company

The Quaker Oats Company, headquartered in Chicago, is a unit of PepsiCo, Inc., one of the world's largest consumer packaged goods companies. For more than 130 years, Quaker's brands have served as symbols of quality, great taste and nutrition. Holding No. 1 positions in their respective categories, Quaker Oats, Quaker Rice Cakes and Quaker Chewy Granola Bars are consumer favorites. For more information, please visit www.QuakerOats.com.

About Jonas Group
Jonas Group is a full-service management and multi-media company. Jonas Group Management represents such artists as the Jonas Brothers and Demi Lovato.  JG New Media & Marketing develops and executes traditional and nontraditional marketing strategies with top brands and artists. Media ventures include ownership in a leading teen and young adult platform, Cambio. Jonas Group CEOs are Kevin Jonas Sr. and Phil McIntyre.

For Nick Jonas, please contact: Victor Trevino, M2M Construction, [email protected]

About PepsiCo

PepsiCo offers the world's largest portfolio of billion-dollar food and beverage brands, including 19 different product lines that generate more than $1 billion in annual retail sales each. Our main businesses -- Quaker, Tropicana, Gatorade, Frito-Lay, and Pepsi Cola -- also make hundreds of other enjoyable and wholesome foods and beverages that are respected household names throughout the world. With net revenues of approximately $60 billion, PepsiCo's people are united by our unique commitment to sustainable growth by investing in a healthier future for people and our planet, which we believe also means a more successful future for PepsiCo. We call this commitment Performance with Purpose: PepsiCo's promise to provide a wide range of foods and beverages for local tastes; to find innovative ways to minimize our impact on the environment, including by conserving energy and water usage, and reducing packaging volume; to provide a great workplace for our associates; and to respect, support, and invest in the local communities where we operate. For more information, please visit www.pepsico.com.

About Little Kids Rock

Little Kids Rock is a 501 (c) (3) nonprofit organization that transforms children's lives by restoring and revitalizing music education in public schools. Little Kids Rock was founded in San Francisco in 2002 by David Wish, an elementary school teacher who had grown frustrated with the lack of music education funding at his school. Today, Little Kids Rock is one of the leading nonprofit providers of free lessons and instruments to underprivileged children in US public schools, and has served more than 160,000 students at over 1,200 schools in 25 cities nationwide. Every child deserves the right to rock. Find out how you can get involved at www.littlekidsrock.org.

SOURCE The Quaker Oats Company