https:\/\/www.ozarkradionews.com\/ozarkradionews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/WUWS-AUDIO.mp3<\/a><\/p>\n00:00:00,980 \u2013> 00:00:10,840
Wake Up Willow Springs is brought to you by Robert Hollis and Shelter Insurance of Willow Springs, Missouri. Now, here\u2019s your host, Wendell Bailey.<\/p>\n
00:00:10,840 \u2013> 00:00:23,080 [Wendall]
Welcome to Wake Up Willow Springs with Hannah Harper, and we\u2019re excited about having Hannah on here with Lori Foster, and we\u2019re, we\u2019re ready to go!<\/p>\n
00:00:23,080 \u2013> 00:00:24,560 [Hannah]
Good morning.<\/p>\n
00:00:24,560 \u2013> 00:00:34,420 [Lori]
Good morning, Hannah. It\u2019s Lori. It\u2019s great to have you on this morning, so we\u2019d love to hear how things are going for you and what, what you could talk about with us this morning.<\/p>\n
00:00:34,420 \u2013> 00:01:04,060 [Hannah]
Yeah, I\u2019m excited to be on here. This is so fun, especially this is airing in my own hometown. I think when this airs, I, I don\u2019t know if I\u2019ll be ar- around or not, but, uh, there\u2019s a lot of exciting things going on right now. We\u2019re about to step into Hollywood week, um, this coming week, and, uh, I think that\u2019s when a lot of things get narrowed down. They go from a big number to, I think, down to 30. So [chuckles] lot of, um, emotions and, um, fears, but overall, I\u2019m really excited to step into it.<\/p>\n
00:01:04,060 \u2013> 00:01:11,620 [Lori]
Well, can you tell us a little bit about that that\u2019s airing this week, Hannah, and will we expect to see you on the show?<\/p>\n
00:01:11,620 \u2013> 00:01:47,060 [Hannah]
Yes, you can expect to see me this Monday on that episode. I think that\u2019s airing on the 23rd. Um, I think that they went from 100 plus down to 30, and I sung\u2026 I can give a spoiler on what I sung. It\u2019s a Lee Ann Womack song called Little Past Little Rock. It was one of my most requested on my pages, so I thought it would be fitting for that round. Um, and it was very nerve-wracking. Like I said, um, I\u2019ve grown up singing in churches, and you sing on a platform where you don\u2019t expect to hear feedback in a sense of, uh, you know, you sing for the Lord. [chuckles] And then you get in front of judges, and you, you wait, and you stand there nervously to hear what they think of you.<\/p>\n
00:01:47,060 \u2013> 00:01:47,300 [Lori]
Mm-hmm.<\/p>\n
00:01:47,300 \u2013> 00:02:04,500 [Hannah]
And, uh, that was probably the most nerve-wracking thing I\u2019ve ever done in my life because that was our first live performance in front of an audience. My very first audition was just in front of the, in front of the judges. So, um, I was scared, to say the least, and my knees were shaking, and hopefully, you can\u2019t see my whole body trembling on camera.<\/p>\n
00:02:04,500 \u2013> 00:02:05,080 [Lori]
[chuckles]<\/p>\n
00:02:05,080 \u2013> 00:02:10,140 [Hannah]
But, uh, I\u2019m nervous to see how it all, it all airs.<\/p>\n
00:02:10,140 \u2013> 00:02:29,660 [Lori]
Well, that\u2019s very exciting, and, and we\u2019re pretty proud of you here in Willow for, for being, uh, a contestant and making it that far. And so we also know that you got a hometown concert coming up, and you pretty much sold out the Star Theatre pretty quickly on that. So can you tell us a little bit about, uh, what folks that get to attend will get to see that night?<\/p>\n
00:02:29,660 \u2013> 00:02:39,780 [Hannah]
Yes. So next Friday, February 27th, I\u2019m, I\u2019m gonna be at The Star in Willow, and, uh, it sold out within 15 minutes, which is absolutely crazy. Um-<\/p>\n
00:02:39,780 \u2013> 00:02:40,510 [Wendall]
Well, we\u2019re not the biggest-<\/p>\n
00:02:40,510 \u2013> 00:02:43,100 [Hannah]
I have been to The Star. What was that?<\/p>\n
00:02:43,100 \u2013> 00:02:47,200 [Charlie]
We\u2019re not the biggest theater in, in the world. [laughing]<\/p>\n
00:02:47,200 \u2013> 00:02:47,370 [Hannah]
[chuckles]<\/p>\n
00:02:47,370 \u2013> 00:02:47,799 [Lori]
[chuckles]<\/p>\n
00:02:47,800 \u2013> 00:02:47,960 [Charlie]
Yeah.<\/p>\n
00:02:47,960 \u2013> 00:02:59,840 [Hannah]
Right. Yeah, I think I, I spoke with Sherry Levin about it, and she said that there was only gonna be\u2026 I think there was, it seats 180 people. Um, so I\u2019m pretty sure 100 of those people are my family-<\/p>\n
00:02:59,840 \u2013> 00:02:59,890 [Charlie]
Are-<\/p>\n
00:02:59,890 \u2013> 00:03:26,370 [Hannah]
\u2026 and the rest are people who, I guess, somebody paid to come see me \u2019cause I can\u2019t believe they paid for a ticket to get in there. [chuckles] I\u2019m really excited about it, and, um, I, I hope we can do another show in Willow later \u2019cause there were so many people who wanted to be a part that couldn\u2019t get tickets in time. Um, but this is my hometown, and it\u2019s, it\u2019s sweet to have this prior to, um, the next step in Idol, wherever it goes, or if we\u2019re hitting the road. I don\u2019t really know where it\u2019s gonna lead-<\/p>\n
00:03:26,370 \u2013> 00:03:26,370 [Lori]
Yeah<\/p>\n
00:03:26,370 \u2013> 00:03:30,580 [Hannah]
\u2026 but I, I thought it would be fun just to spend time with everybody<\/p>\n
00:03:30,580 \u2013> 00:03:32,740 [Hannah]
and get to know the community better.<\/p>\n
00:03:32,740 \u2013> 00:03:40,520 [Lori]
That\u2019s great. Now, Charlie, you\u2019ve got a couple of granddaughters that are pretty excited and wanted to ask a couple of questions. So you want to ask Hannah a couple of questions for them?<\/p>\n
00:03:40,520 \u2013> 00:03:51,740 [Charlie]
Oh, oh, my goodness, they are so excited, you know. And, uh, the, uh\u2026 First of all, I wanted to congratulate you. I see that your song, String Cheese, wound up at number one on Billboard yesterday. Is that right?<\/p>\n
00:03:51,740 \u2013> 00:04:01,080 [Hannah]
That\u2019s crazy! I, I was trying to fact-check that. I got a bunch of messages, and I couldn\u2019t see it, but I know at one time it was on number 14. I don\u2019t know about it being on, on number one. That\u2019s wild.<\/p>\n
00:04:01,080 \u2013> 00:04:24,680 [Charlie]
Yeah, I saw it on Facebook yesterday, and I thought, \u201cWow, that is really, really neat,\u201d the, uh, thing to do. But, uh, yeah, I\u2019ve, I\u2019ve got two little granddaughters named\u2026 One\u2019s named Maisie Quinn, the other one is named Enola, and, uh, I, I asked them if they, if they could ask you a question, what would they, what would they ask? And they said, \u201cWell, what would your advice be to a little girl who really wants to be a singer?\u201d<\/p>\n
00:04:24,680 \u2013> 00:04:45,950 [Hannah]
Oh, my goodness. Well, I\u2019d just say, I mean, don\u2019t let anybody get in your way. You know, if you wanna sing, you sing wherever, to whoever. I always remember going to the grocery store, and people would walk up to my mom, and they knew that she\u2019d sing, and they\u2019d say, \u201cHey, Katrina, can you sing us a song?\u201d And I would get so embarrassed \u2019cause she would start singing in the store, and I was like, \u201cMom,\u201d like, \u201cyou\u2019re embarrassing me.\u201d<\/p>\n
00:04:45,950 \u2013> 00:04:45,980 [Charlie]
[chuckles]<\/p>\n
00:04:45,980 \u2013> 00:05:22,080 [Hannah]
And now that I\u2019m an adult, um, it instilled a confidence in me from my mom that she did that as a young girl, that it don\u2019t matter what people say. If you feel like you wanna do it, you better just do it, you know? And your only competition is yourself, no matter where you go, because what everybody else has to say don\u2019t matter. And I\u2019d love to meet those little girls, sing with those little girls. That would be so sweet, but mainly just, if you have a dream, chase it, because nobody else is gonna do it for you. And I mean, you got their whole\u2026 They got their whole life ahead of them. So I hope that if they wanna be singers, then they pursue that.<\/p>\n
00:05:22,080 \u2013> 00:05:42,020 [Charlie]
Well, I tell you, there\u2019s nothing better than family support if you\u2019re, if you\u2019re trying to be a singer, and, uh, and you, you have a wonderful family that supports you in everything you do and, uh, backs you up when you\u2019re singing and plays good music for you. Uh, En- Enola is my other little granddaughter, and she says she just wants you to know that she loves you, she loves your voice-<\/p>\n
00:05:42,020 \u2013> 00:05:42,730 [Hannah]
Oh, [chuckles]<\/p>\n
00:05:42,730 \u2013> 00:05:45,340 [Charlie]
\u2026 and String Cheese is her very favorite song.<\/p>\n
00:05:46,012 \u2013> 00:05:51,211 [Hannah]
\u2026 Well, that tickles me so much. I hope I can meet them. If not, bring them by the Star when I\u2019m over there.<\/p>\n
00:05:51,212 \u2013> 00:05:51,292 [Charlie]
Well-<\/p>\n
00:05:51,292 \u2013> 00:05:53,472 [Hannah]
I\u2019m gonna do a meet and greet prior to, uh-<\/p>\n
00:05:53,472 \u2013> 00:05:53,482 [Charlie]
Okay<\/p>\n
00:05:53,482 \u2013> 00:06:09,632 [Hannah]
\u2026 or maybe after. I can\u2019t remember which we had planned, but, um, if, even if people didn\u2019t have tickets, I was gonna be out there and say hey to them just \u2019cause I\u2019ve been a stay-at-home mom ever since we\u2019ve lived in Willow, and, you know, I don\u2019t really know how you make friends unless you go to D&W and you ask [laughing] the register- the lady at the register if you want to be your friend, you know, \u2019cause-<\/p>\n
00:06:09,632 \u2013> 00:06:09,982 [Charlie]
Wow!<\/p>\n
00:06:09,982 \u2013> 00:06:11,772 [Hannah]
\u2026 I stay at home all the time. So-<\/p>\n
00:06:11,772 \u2013> 00:06:11,952 [Charlie]
Yeah<\/p>\n
00:06:11,952 \u2013> 00:06:14,972 [Hannah]
\u2026 this is a good way for me to get to know the community a little bit better.<\/p>\n
00:06:14,972 \u2013> 00:06:29,752 [Charlie]
It is. It\u2019s great, and I\u2019ll tell you something else we, we do once, once a month, is we have a really good jam at Pizza Americana, uh, on the third Saturday night of every month. You\u2019d be welcome to just drop by anytime you want and, uh, and sing and play with us. We\u2019d have a ball. So, uh-<\/p>\n
00:06:29,752 \u2013> 00:06:31,272 [Hannah]
That sounds like a good time.<\/p>\n
00:06:31,272 \u2013> 00:06:40,752 [Charlie]
And I, I think you also have another\u2026 You have another concert coming up at Pine Meadows out here, just, uh, uh, outside town here in Willow Springs. That\u2019d be in June, I think, right?<\/p>\n
00:06:40,752 \u2013> 00:06:46,272 [Hannah]
Yes, I\u2019m gonna be at Pine Meadows. I believe that is, um, June 20th. Um-<\/p>\n
00:06:46,272 \u2013> 00:06:50,252 [Charlie]
But we, we lost your v- we lost your volume just a little bit.<\/p>\n
00:06:50,252 \u2013> 00:06:51,252 [Hannah]
Oh, can you hear me now?<\/p>\n
00:06:51,252 \u2013> 00:06:53,632 [Charlie]
That\u2019s better. Yeah, yeah. And, uh-<\/p>\n
00:06:53,632 \u2013> 00:07:00,072 [Hannah]
Yes, I will be at Pine- I\u2019ll be at Pine Meadows on June 20th out there, and we\u2019re gonna host a full band concert also.<\/p>\n
00:07:00,072 \u2013> 00:07:16,652 [Charlie]
Mm-hmm. Okay. Well, that\u2019s gonna be great. Well, I\u2019ll be looking forward to it. Wendell, you, have you got any more questions for Hannah? No, Hannah, we\u2019re excited about your coming here, and, and we\u2019re really, really looking forward to your visit back here. Yeah.<\/p>\n
00:07:16,652 \u2013> 00:07:36,392 [Lori]
Yeah, the only thing I\u2019d ask, Hannah, is just, you know, how, how much has this experience\u2026 What have you grown and learned out of this experience? I think that\u2019s, uh, something that\u2019s, you know, pretty important as you\u2019re going through it. You\u2019re still going through it, but you\u2019ve also come a long way since this all probably started. So what would you tell all of us that you\u2019ve learned out of it, and what, what else would you like us to know about you?<\/p>\n
00:07:37,412 \u2013> 00:08:19,362 [Hannah]
Oh, man, the experience has been unreal, and the love that I have felt from so many people, um\u2026 American Idol aired the audition, and I think at one point, over 45 million people had viewed it. And just hearing that number alone and that many, that many people had heard me, seen my face, tell my story, it really blew my mind. But more importantly, the opportunity that I had, you know, just to tell my story and speak about the Lord and, and how He\u2019s brought me through postpartum and motherhood and different, different things like that, was really encouraging to me. But, um, going through the competition has taught me so much about myself that I didn\u2019t know I needed to learn. Um, I\u2019ve sang my whole life, and in this realm, it\u2019s, it\u2019s a totally different ballgame.<\/p>\n
00:08:19,362 \u2013> 00:08:19,372 [Charlie]
Yeah.<\/p>\n
00:08:19,372 \u2013> 00:08:32,882 [Hannah]
So there\u2019s a lot of things in the competition that had I not stepped in, I never would have learned, um, especially interviews. You know, I struggled. One of my very first inter- interviews with Idol, they said, \u201cTell us your name,\u201d and I said, \u201cHi, Hannah Harper.\u201d And the lady said, \u201cNo, you\u2019re Hannah Harper. That\u2019s your name.\u201d<\/p>\n
00:08:32,882 \u2013> 00:08:32,932 [Charlie]
[laughing]<\/p>\n
00:08:32,932 \u2013> 00:08:34,872 [Hannah]
I was like, \u201cOh, my goodness, I\u2019m so nervous.\u201d<\/p>\n
00:08:34,872 \u2013> 00:08:35,072 [Charlie]
Yeah.<\/p>\n
00:08:35,072 \u2013> 00:09:25,572 [Hannah]
So I, I think that\u2019s another thing. It\u2019s just a confidence thing. For so many years, I relied on my dad to talk for me, \u2019cause he was, he was the spokesman for our family band, and, and I would just stay in the shadows, and I could sing, but don\u2019t ask me to talk. So that\u2019s one area that I\u2019ve had to grow. Um, but more than anything, just bringing my kids along for all of this is so exciting for me, and it\u2019s a new challenge. You know, there\u2019s so many, so many things about this that would have been so much easier to pursue before I had three babies. Now I\u2019m just kind of dragging them along. Um, but there\u2019s a lot that I\u2019ve learned, and I\u2019m really excited about the competition because, um, we get one-on-one time with vocal coaches. We get one-on-one time with interview professionals on how to better handle ourselves and stage presence. So there\u2019s so many things about that alone that no matter where I place in the competition, I\u2019ll walk away with a lot of knowledge, and I\u2019m really excited about that part.<\/p>\n
00:09:25,572 \u2013> 00:09:30,092 [Charlie]
Mm-hmm. Well, that\u2019s great. I think Dave Nelson here has a real quick question for you.<\/p>\n
00:09:30,092 \u2013> 00:09:38,932 [Speaker 4]
Yes. Good morning, Hannah. One short question, and we\u2019ll make it quick: Are you going to do \u201cString Cheese\u201d for us Friday?<\/p>\n
00:09:38,992 \u2013> 00:09:48,511 [Hannah]
Yes, I plan to do \u201cString Cheese\u201d at the Star. It will be on my setlist as, as probably forever. It\u2019s one of my most requested songs, so if anybody\u2019s there, they\u2019ll hear it.<\/p>\n
00:09:48,512 \u2013> 00:10:03,932 [Charlie]
Well, Hannah, I hate to cut you off. We\u2019ve really enjoyed visiting with you, but we\u2019re, we\u2019re out of time for the show today, so, uh, we wish you the very best. You\u2019re an incredible talent, and, uh, the city of Willow Springs and everybody around here is, is, is sure backing you for a winner, okay?<\/p>\n
00:10:03,932 \u2013> 00:10:06,072 [Hannah]
Well, I appreciate it so much. Thanks for having me.<\/p>\n
\u00a0<\/p>\n
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