Pair of former Wallace State students win $44,500 on FOX’s “Beat Shazam”
Watch Emma’s and Jazmin’s appearance| https://www.fox.com/watch/a85c09a5b8ba968348af25f0c11dab26/
HANCEVILLE, ALA. – Wallace State alum Emma Wright has been a loyal follower of the
FOX game show “Beat Shazam” since its debut in 2017.
Wright and former Wallace State dual enrollment student Jazmin Bobo are now in the
record books as “Beat Shazam” contestant winners.
Wright and Bobo’s appearance on Season 4, Episode 8 of the show, hosted by comedian
and actor Jamie Foxx, aired on July 22. The duo won $44,500 in cash by correctly identifying
short song snippets. Wright and Bobo defeated a pair of teams over the opening rounds
and advanced to the finals, which pits the winning contestants against the Shazam
music app.
Shazam was ultimately victorious against Wright and Bobo.
“I’m a huge fan of the show and will forever be thrilled for the opportunity to be
a contestant. I’ve performed my entire life and that show was a performance. I love
it. I was nervous when we started, but settled in. I was as confident as could be
from there,” Wright said. “I’ve always wanted to pursue any entertainment opportunity
I could. I was humbled and blessed to represent my hometown, the Cullman area and
my colleges on a national platform.”
Added Bobo: “It was a once-in-lifetime experience. Your mind goes blank when you’re
on set and the song board and Jamie Foxx are in front of you. In that moment, you
feed off your adrenaline until you come back to reality. It was an experience I’ll
always cherish. It’s life-changing money at our ages. The love we have received from
our communities has been awesome. I continue to receive texts and calls about it.”
Wright is a 2020 Wallace State graduate and was the 2019 Miss Wallace State. Wright,
also a former dual enrollment student, is a J.B. Pennington High grad and currently
pursuing a biomedical sciences degree at UAB with a pre-med concentration. Her career
goal is to work as an emergency room physician. In addition to her time as Miss Wallace
State, Wright has also competed on the state level as Miss Center Point and will serve
as Miss Historic Springville in 2022.
Bobo is a former Wallace State dual enrollment student from Cold Springs. She was
enrolled in the college’s Fast Track program while in high school. She’s also a current
student at UAB, pursuing a healthcare management degree with hopes of ultimately becoming
a doctor.
Wright and Bobo had to keep their “Beat Shazam,” appearance and winnings a top secret
up until last week’s episode. In fact, they had to be tight-lipped for nearly 15 months.
Wright and Bobo traveled to California for the episode’s taping in February 2020,
right before the COVID-19 pandemic swept the world.
“We flew back home on a Friday and things were literally beginning to shut down in
California the following Monday,” Wright said.
“People have wondered for a while why I went to California for a week last year. I
had to pretend it was for a vacation,” Bobo said.
Prior to flying to California, Wright and Bobo spent six months auditioning for the
show through Zoom – before Zoom became a popular communication avenue during the pandemic.
As is the objective of the game one sees on FOX, Wright and Bobo had to prove their
knowledge of song titles during their Zoom auditions with producers. Their engaging
personalities and chemistry together were also appealing for the representatives of
the show.
“We learned to use Zoom (during auditions) before Zoom was popular. I was at Emma’s
house 4-5 times per week during the audition phase, talking to different people from
the show. The game is harder on Zoom than in real life,” Bobo said. “As we were competing
on Zoom, we once missed a song and Emma hit me on the shoulder. We both lost it and
laughed. The producers loved it and thought we had a great bond. Our personalities
were important during the tryout.”
Bobo added she and Wright made an effort to promote the value of attending a community
college during their auditions.
Once they hit the stage in Los Angeles, among the song titles they correctly identified
during their episode was “Bad Guy” by Billie Eilish; “Bang, Bang,” by Ariana Grande,
Nicki Minaj and Jesse J; and “A Sky Full of Stars,” by Coldplay.
Shazam beat the local duo in the finals by identifying “Friday I’m in Love” by The
Cure.
Both women were ecstatic to meet Corinne Foxx, the daughter of Jamie Foxx, who also
stars in the game show.
“I’m one of her biggest fans. She approached us after our taping and carried on a
casual, normal conversation with us. It was awesome,” Bobo said.
Wright and Bobo met less than two years ago at the Cullman Aquatic Center while both
were working as lifeguards and the rest is history.
“It was great to share the moment with one of my best friends. We had a blast throughout
the entire process,” Wright said.
Added Bobo: “Emma is musically talented in multiple ways. We have the same musical
tastes, and it’s one thing that brought us together as friends. It’s incredible we
took that aspect of our friendship and cashed it in on a game show,” Bobo said.
“Beat Shazam” airs each Thursday at 7 p.m. on FOX.
Wright and Bobo will split the cash earnings.
For more information about Wallace State, visit www.wallacestate.edu
###id="attachment_17989" align="alignnone" width="300"
Emma Wright, left, is a 2020 Wallace State graduate and Jazmin Bobo is a former Wallace
State dual enrollment student from Cold Springs. id="attachment_17990" align="alignnone" width="166"
Emma Wright, left, is a 2020 Wallace State graduate and Jazmin Bobo is a former Wallace
State dual enrollment student from Cold Springs. id="attachment_17991" align="alignnone" width="300"
Emma Wright, left, is a 2020 Wallace State graduate and Jazmin Bobo is a former Wallace
State dual enrollment student from Cold Springs.______________________________
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