Students’ safety video makes top five
A music video produced by students from Lincoln Park Performing Arts Charter School is one of five finalists in a national contest sponsored by Ford.
Juniors Amber Ardolino of Beaver Falls, Levi Keller of Mars, Chalisse Monroe of Pittsburgh, and Trey Singletary of Aliquippa, wrote, produced and performed their original song “Drive Safely” for the online music video contest Belt It Out for Safety. The contest is part of Ford Motor Co.’s Driving Safe for Life (FDSFL) program, which promotes safe driving among teens.
After a month of online voting, their video has been voted into the top five and is now in the running for the grand prize—a $5,000 savings bond for each student—to be announced at the end of May.
“I thought it was a super cool, super helpful project,” said Ardolino. “We were excited to get involved.”
“Especially since it reaches everybody,” added Singletary. “I’m sure everyone knows of someone our age that’s died in a car crash.”
The Driving Skills for Life program, sponsored jointly by Ford Motor Co. and the Governor Highway Safety Association, works to raise awareness about the number one killer of teens in America, motor vehicle accidents. The competition required that submissions cover certain topics including texting and driving, drinking and driving, and speed and space management.
With that in mind, the group started collaborating on the project in early February. “We went into a practice room here at school and just started messing around with some stuff and then it all came together,” said Keller.
The result was a catchy, pop track featuring Ardolino on lead vocals, Monroe on backup, Singletary with a rap interlude, and Keller on guitar.
“We all have different majors so we were able to use all our talents to come together and do something really awesome,” said Ardolino.
The Monroe-penned track was laid over a synth beat produced by fellow student Adam Kremmel. Singletary and Keller wrote the instrumental pieces for the piano and guitar. “Trey wasn’t even supposed to rap, we just threw that in there for fun,” said Keller.
“It was fun working on this project because we’re all best friends, and the school and students got involved and everyone really supported us,” said Monroe. “And the song is really great too. It gets stuck in your head, and we’re hoping that it will stick with students and encourage them not to do anything on the road that could be detrimental.”
The winning entry will be judged by pop-artist and FDSFL spokesperson Kate Voegele, who appears on the WB’s “One Tree Hill.” The grand prize is $5,000 in savings bonds for each team member (up to $25,000). Second and third place are $3,000 and $1,000 savings bonds, respectively.
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