PHOTO PROVIDED Asiah Savage, a 16-year-old junior of Hughesville High School, sang live “The Star Spangled Banner” at the Pennsylvania Farm Show on Jan. 5.

HUGHESVILLE – On Saturday, Jan. 5, Hughesville High School junior Ashia Savage was chosen to perform the “Star Spangled Banner” at the 103rd Pennsylvania Farm Show in Harrisburg.

The talented 16 year old singer posted herself singing the song on Facebook which set the stage for her musical performance that morning.

Savage was among ten singers chosen to open the show live each morning with the national anthem. She won with 283 votes and received the second highest number of votes in the contest which was posted on the Farm Show’s Facebook page.

Savage had more than 4.7K views of her video. She is the daughter of Jim and Julie Savage, who are big supporters and always encourage her to share her singing.

“I like to dance, sing, hang out with my friends and have fun,” she said. “My influences are Shawn Mendes, Lauren Daigle and Pentatonix because they are so young and have achieved so much.”

The contest was open to Pennsylvania residents of all ages – both individuals and groups. Contestants entered by uploading a video of themselves singing “The Star-Spangled Banner,” without instrumental accompaniment, to the Pennsylvania Farm Show Facebook page. Finalists were selected by a panel of judges and then posted for fan voting by Facebook likes. A winner will sing live at 8 a.m. each day of the Farm Show.

Savage has an extensive portfolio. She performed in the PMEA District Chorus Festival. She also won the WGRC talent contest, which included a professional recording session featured on the WGRC Get Real program on Sunday evenings. She sang at WGRC’s Knoebels day on July 27, which was moved at the last minute to a local church in Lewisburg due to flooding at Knoebels.

The talented singer opened for The Union of Saints and Sinners and National Recording Artists Stars Go Dim and sang the national anthem to open for harness horse racing at Summer Fest for Meagan’s Box, a local charity.

Savage was the featured singer at the Hughesville Spartan Band half time show during varsity football games for the 2018 band show and sang for the jazz band during the spring 2018 jazz concert.

She also performed in the final round for the Sunbury River Festival’s “The Valley’s Got Talent” competition and sang the national anthem for opening ceremonies for the Kiwanis sponsored Montoursville Fall Festival.

In addition to singing, Savage dances at D&K’s Studio of Dance and has been in their yearly dance recitals, and she is a member of the color guard with the Hughesville Spartan Band.

Next year, Savage will be participating in the PMEA District Chorus. When she’s not performing in shows and competitions, Savage sings frequently at her home church, Revival Tabernacle in Watsontown, and she has sung at a couple of other local churches and her friend’s parent’s funeral services.

“My mom tells me I’ve been singing for as long as I could talk,” Savage said. “I have always liked music. The first time I remember performing solo in front of others, I was 11 and sang ‘O Holy Night’ at my church for Christmas.

Savage recorded her video and entered it in the contest and wasn’t sure what to expect next. But as would be expected, she was quite anxious for the result.

“It was weird because I don’t like being recorded when I sing,” she said. “It was stressful because I really wanted to get picked and the voting went on for a week. I don’t like waiting.”

For more information, visit www.farmshow.pa.gov.