FORMER MacKillop College student Clancy Pye is hoping to follow in the footsteps of her brother Mickey after she was selected as a finalist for the Toyota Star Maker during the 50th anniversary of the Tamworth Country Music Festival.
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The grand final was set to take place at the Tamworth Country Music Festival on Sunday, but it has been postponed, along with the rest of the festival, and will now take place on April 19.
Singer-songwriter Clancy grew up performing and touring the Central West with her then Oberon-based family band.
Now she works as a physio at Orange Hospital, but still has a passion for music, and this is the second time she's been selected for the grand final.
She was one of the finalists in 2020, the last time the competition was held, but at the time she had not released any music.
The exposure from the competition brought her to the attention of people across Australia who now follow her music journey.
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"I've released an EP and a couple of singles," she said. "I've written about 120 songs in the past year."
Her brother Mickey won the competition in 2015, later releasing an album and travelling overseas.
"That was sort of my motivation in applying and giving it another go," she said.
"I was really excited; I had really been focusing on writing [music] in the last two years and now I'm looking at releasing music. It's such a prestigious competition too, even to make the top 10."
Bathurst's Kaylee Bell won the Toyota Star Maker competition in 2013.
Toyota Star Maker co-ordinator Cheryl Brown said after the competition's cancellation in 2021 due to COVID-19, it was a huge thrill to resume the event.
"This year's top 10 are a truly inspiring and talented bunch, who come from a diverse range of backgrounds and talents, who've also managed to continue with their craft despite the past 18 months," she said.
Selected from almost 100 entries, the top 10 will perform two of their songs on stage at the Star Maker Grand Final.
The other finalists are Billie-Jo Porter of Coffs Harbour, Brittany Elise of Queensland, Charlie Fittler of Armidale, Heath Lancaster of Kempsey, Jade Gibson of Victoria, Jake Davey of Taree, Katie Jayne of Scone, Loren Ryan of Tamworth and Max Jackson of Carrington.