The karaoke machine can sometimes be a tool for singers with strong voices to make an impression upon those listening. On the other hand, it can also be a source of embarrassment for singers who can’t carry a note much less a whole Garth Brooks ballad.

In the case of country band Santa Fe, who will stir up the crowd at about 8:30 p.m. Saturday at Fred’s Dance Barn, and its lead singer Andrea Wildman, the karaoke machine is something justifiably more.

With a little encouragement from her college roommate, Wildman found the courage to get behind the karaoke microphone, and soon after she was singing in a band and exchanging salutary greetings with her future husband for the first time.

Advertisement

Though not everyone who sings in front of a crowd of strangers thinks they will be asked to try out for a band immediately, the thought of such blind luck likely has crossed their minds.

The serendipity for Wildman began to creep into her life when someone approached her after her karaoke run through of Trisha Yearwood’s That’s What I Like.

They said, You should think about doing this professionally’ and gave me the number of a band that was looking for a lead singer, Wildman said. I auditioned and now I’m married to the guitar player.

Wildman had an uncertainty in her vocal abilities stemming from other would-be singers who felt they were the next LeAnn Rimes when they were more comparable to Milli Vanilli.

There’s people who think they’re really good and they’re not. So, I thought Oh, I just think I’m good and no one else is going to think I am,’ Wildman said. [The karaoke incident] was a big confidence booster. Now I need to pay more attention to my instincts.

I didn’t really know what I was talking about before.

Wildman, 25, always found singing something she enjoyed. She sang in her high school chorus and in her church choir, but she never saw herself doing it as a job.

Advertisement*

Now that singing has become her job in a sense, Wildman is glad to be performing songs by popular country acts like Shania Twain and other Top-40 country artists because they appeal to her.

I think country music generally tells a good story. The everyday things [country artists] sing about is something that most people can relate to, she said. [Country music] is not always just country like it used to be. There’s more pop in the new country, which appeals to a lot of people.

Wildman said that performing country music is something her and her husband want to be involved with for the rest of their lives. In order to keep their marriage and band separate and successful, there are some unwritten rules the couple follows.

It takes a lot of work because [when we’re playing] you have to say, You’re not my husband right now. You’re the guitar player, and I’m the singer. We have to play together and not let anything else get in the way,’ Wildman said. On the same note, when we’re not doing the band thing it’s kind of like, OK, let’s not talk about Santa Fe.’

We have a set band time. Otherwise, we wouldn’t do anything else.

Saturday’s performance will be strictly band time. Fred’s Dance Barn happens to be Wildman’s favorite place to play. Wildman said everyone who enjoys country music should partake in the Fred’s Dance Barn experience at least once.

You’re in this huge building and people start coming in, and all night long they just keep coming in the door, she said. You can see the line of cars down the drive, and it’s like something from a movie.

Also sounding like something from a movie is the shy girl singing in front of a karaoke microphone and then gaining the chance to make a career as a country singer.

For some reason, I had this roommate who really, really wanted me to sing, Wildman said. If it wasn’t for her, I wouldn’t have gotten in front of all those people at a bar. The right person happened to be there, who happened to know someone who happened to need a singer.

People always say things happen for a reason.

Wildman said the Yearwood song she sang at the karaoke bar remains part of Santa Fe’s arsenal of popular country songs because she is kind of attached to it now, and it’s a really fun song to play.

FACTOID:The doors to Fred’s Dance Barn, Rural Route 1 in Carterville, open at 7:30 p.m. Admission is $5. Fred’s Dance Barn does not serve alcohol, but those 21 and older may bring their own.

For information, call 549-8221.