Queen's Roger Taylor Announces Winners of Queen Extravaganza Competition

Four decades later, the music of Queen hasn’t just survived, it’s thrived. The band, who recently received the “Global Icon Award” at the MTV European Music Awards, has sold more than 300 million albums, 16 of which were No. 1 chart-toppers. They’ve written and recorded 18 No. 1 singles, have amassed a planet-wide fanbase, and remain one of the most influential groups of all time. And to hear Queen drummer Roger Taylor tell it, they’re just getting started.

2012 will see the launch of “The Queen Extravaganza Tour,” a grand touring production that will celebrate the music of Queen. Coming on board to ensure the touring show will match the design and excitement of Queen at its best will be such rock tour heavyweights as stage designer Mark Fisher (U2, The Rolling Stones, Cirque de Soleil) and lighting designer Rob Sinclair (Adele, Peter Gabriel).

Taylor will oversee this royal road show, taking the role of producer and music director, with Brian May involved later in the production, but Taylor’s most important role, however, was leading the judges, Spike Edney (Queen’s keyboard player since the mid 80’s and Trip Khalaf (Queen’s eternal sound engineer) in hand picking the musicians that will be featured on the tour. And after 11 weeks of reviewing online auditions and weighing votes from Queen fans around the world, Taylor is ready to announce the line-up.

“As the audition videos began posting, we could see right away that the caliber of talent was very high,” says Taylor. “But when I got into the studio with the final 25 musicians, I realized that these guys are seriously good players. They went way beyond my expectations. It was an incredibly difficult decision to choose the final line-up. I wish I could've kept them all, but in the end, I'm very happy with this group of exceptional musicians."

“The Queen Extravaganza” lead singer will be Marc Martel (Montreal, QC / Nashville,TN)   

 “What an amazing and unexpected opportunity to come our way – not to mention the timing of it all for me,” said Marc Martel, whose audition video for “Somebody to Love” earned him an MTV O Award and an appearance on the Ellen Degeneres Show.  “Having gotten to know the other contest winners a bit in LA, I’m confident we have what it takes to gel as a unit and give our best to do justice to some of the best rock music ever recorded.  I am so thankful for the chance to do this.  Gonna be Fun!”

ABC Family Featuring Dave Barnes

ABC Family is featuring Dave Barnes' "Very Merry Christmas" on their site and in their upcoming original movie 12 Dates of Christmas, premiering Sunday, December 11 at 8/7c.  Click here to download the song for free for 24 hours only.