Riding in the back of her parents’ car in the third grade, Kennedy Plowman sang along to the newest Disney Channel sensation, “High School Musical.” When the Plowman family arrived back home, she was immediately signed up for vocal and piano lessons. Now a senior in speech communication, Plowman’s love of music has led her to compete in Cyclone Voice.

Plowman is not the only hopeful aiming to make her mark on stage. Fifteen talented artists made it through preliminaries and hope to make their mark at the fifth annual Cyclone Voice. Cyclone Voice Finals take place at 8 p.m. Thursday in the Great Hall of the Memorial Union.

The contestants, co-directors and judges put their time and passion into showcasing the talent at Iowa State. Preparations started early for all those involved.

“I actually competed in it myself last year, so it is really cool to be able to be on both ends, where I was a contestant once and now I get to do all the planning that goes on behind it,” said Linda Tong, senior in event management and special events co-director for the Student Union Board, which is in charge of Cyclone Voice.

Contestants are asked to perform at Cyclone Voice prelims with an appropriate song and one instrument or accompaniment track prepared. The contestants are judged by a panel of handpicked judges. Those who score the highest at the prelims move on to the final competition.

“I do a lot of research on local music teachers around here, local choir teachers, music directors, as they would be people who are credible and do a really good job at giving them feedback that is really useful, especially if they are finalists,” Tong said.

The judges for this year’s Cyclone Voice include Comedy College teacher Gavin Jerome, Iowa State music lecturer Kristina Versteegt and Ames Community Arts Council Director Jennifer Brockpahler.

Tong will arrive the day of the show directly after her classes. Her experience in the competition will then come in handy as she organizes the contestants’ arrival, mic checks and meet and greet.

“I have definitely taken contestants into mind and try to make things more efficient in terms of what time they need to get to the location and then just relaying more information to them so they are as comfortable as possible,” Tong said.

After the contestants meet each other and the co-directors, they will wait backstage as the emcee, Mason Ramsey, takes the stage for his sound check. Tong knew Ramsey would emcee since she took her position.

Best known as the “Walmart Yodeling Kid” from his viral YouTube video, Mason Ramsey continues to rise in the world of country music. He signed with a major music record, Atlantic Records, and released an EP including his original song “Famous” and his rendition of “Lovesick Blues.”

“I am just excited to see how Mason Ramsey will be emceeing, as I have seen how a college student emcees and how last year’s emcee was,” Tong said. She’s interested to see how the young performer will use his charm and stage presence to keep the audience entertained.

A love for music drives the whole of Cyclone Voice. Tong, her co-director and the judges share a passion for music with their contestants. Tong herself is a music major who has been singing her whole life.

“Music has really allowed me to set my own goals, and to be able to achieve those goals feels really good, especially through high school and now,” Tong said. “It is also having those goals for myself have taught me to set goals for myself far more in the future for career wise, life wise. It has always been something that is really stress relieving for me.”

Cyclone Voice Finals will be held at 8 p.m. Thursday in the Great Hall of the Memorial Union. The show will feature the 15 contestants as well as a performance from emcee Mason Ramsey at the end. This competition is free for the public and students to attend. The winner will be given two free tickets to the Spring Outdoor Concert.

Q&A with the contestants