‘Idol’ winner, singer/songwriter headlines at Benedictine

Lisle, Illinois ~ National recording artist and “American Idol” season 11 winner Phillip Phillips will take to the stage at “BenBash 2013” in Benedictine University’s Dan and Ada Rice Center at 8:00 p.m. on Saturday, April 13.

This is a perfect opportunity for Phillip Phillips fans, and anyone looking to hear a great singer/songwriter, to see him perform live in an informal setting at a reasonable price.

Since his “American Idol” appearance, the 22-year-old from Leesburg, Ga., has gone on to produce the most successful coronation song of any “American Idol” winner with his hit single “Home,” which has sold more than 3.4 million copies.

The track has since gone triple platinum and was used as the soundtrack for the 2012 U.S. Olympics Women’s Gymnastics team and more recently has become the unofficial theme song for Hurricane Sandy relief.

His debut album, “The World From the Side of the Moon,” debuted at No. 4 on the
Billboard’s Top 200 chart and has already reached gold status.

Phillips started making music when he was 14, and honed his talent playing with a
karaoke machine. He soon found himself mastering riffs from classic rock tracks
like Deep Purple’s “Smoke on the Water” and Ozzy Osbourne’s “Crazy Train.”

With encouragement from his family and friends, Phillips took a break from working in his family’s pawn shop and auditioned for “American Idol,” where he tore through powerful, vocally-demanding songs by artists like Creedence Clearwater Revival, Otis Redding and Wilson Pickett.

Doors will open at 6:30 p.m. for the pre-party sponsored by 103.5 KISS-FM. Pre-sale tickets are two for $50 and four for $100 and will go on sale February 13-14.
Beginning February 15, general admission tickets will be $30.

Tickets can be purchased online at ben.edu/benbash and on the University’s campus in the Krasa Student Center, Room 055.

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Benedictine University is an independent Roman Catholic institution located in Lisle, Illinois just 25 miles west of Chicago. Founded in 1887, Benedictine provides 55 undergraduate majors, 15 graduate and four doctoral programs. Benedictine University is ranked No.1 among the country’s fastest-growing campuses between 2000-2010 in The Chronicle of Higher Education’s list of private nonprofit research institutions, and Forbes magazine named Benedictine among “America’s Top Colleges” for the second consecutive year in 2012. Benedictine University’s Master of Business Administration (M.B.A.) program is listed by Crain’s Chicago Business as the fifth largest in the Chicago area in 2012.