Ozark Star Gazing: Ellen Petersen

by Cindy Clark

(SEARCY, AR) The Ozark Mountains own bragging rights to an impressive list of folks well-known for their contributions to world of art and entertainment — Scott Joplin, Laura Ingalls Wilder, Johnny Cash, Glen Campbell and Brad Pitt, just to name a few.

Branson, Missouri alone has drawn famous people to its hills for generations and offered a place for talent to be show-cased, admired and — in some instances — sky-rocketed to fame. Venues like Silver Dollar City, The Dixie Stampede, and The Little Opry Theatre offer a stage for the stars of today — and tomorrow — to shine.

There’s one such star shining brightly right now:

Ellen Petersen.

Ellen is the 22-year old daughter of Jon and Karen Petersen. She, along with her brother Matthew, sisters, Katie and Julianne, and her parents, have performed a weekly bluegrass music show for over two years at the Little Opry Theatre. Ellen is the banjo player for the band. Their shows are fresh, humorous and thoroughly entertaining.

This past summer, Ellen chose something a little different. She tried out for Fox Network’s American Idol during a bus audition at The Landing in downtown Branson. After waiting in line for over four hours, she made it through the first round of auditioning, which afforded her the opportunity to audition in Kansas City for three celebrity judges:

Harry Connick Jr., Jennifer Lopez, and Keith Urban.

Ellen sang an old Patsy Montana song called “I Want to be a Cowboy’s Sweetheart while playing banjo. The song also included yodeling. See video above right.

Ellen’s performance was flawless. The judges were impressed. Not only did she win a golden ticket to Hollywood, but she was also joined by Connick Jr. and Urban onstage for an impromptu performance of “The Ballad of Jed Clampett,” which Urban requested she perform. Her professionalism shone through as she played a spot-on banjo rendition of the song while the two men sang along.

In a recent telephone interview with Ellen, I asked her when she first realized she wanted to be a banjo player, Ellen laughed and said, “I didn’t have that realization. My dad had that realization.”

She explained that her family had attended a bluegrass festival. When her dad saw the families playing music together — and the closeness that it brought to those families — he decided their family would do the same. He bought a banjo that same day.

Ellen was 15 when she and her family began performing. “There was an old Radio Shack building where bluegrass bands would perform 45-minute sets. When we started, we didn’t know enough songs for an entire set!”

How did she learn to yodel? Ellen recalled a trip to a bluegrass camp in West Virginia. Having suffered an ankle injury, her activities were limited. While other family members were involved elsewhere, she attended a yodeling workshop.

Regarding her favorite musical artists, Ellen mentioned Alison Krauss and the bluegrass band Flatt Lonesome, but acknowledged her musical tastes have grown and changed over the years. She stated that she hopes to remain true to the bluegrass genre as much as possible during her American Idol journey.

I was most curious about was how she felt auditioning in front of the celebrity judges and how she was she able to pull off that impromptu performance so smoothly:

“It was so surreal! I didn’t realize in the moment of the audition how I felt because I was so focused on the words and banjo chords. Once it was over, it was such a relief! But then, when they asked me to come back and play the Beverly Hillbillies song, I said a little prayer and God pulled me through. I was having so much fun I wasn’t aware of the stress.”

Once she exited the audition room, she told her family, “Wow! That was crazy! That’s gonna be hilarious!”

Perhaps the most strikingly unique quality about this crooning beauty is not her pink banjo — while that is certainly unique — but her mature faith and trust that God’s plan for her is what she most desires, even if that means not winning American Idol.

“I have discovered through life, music and American Idol, that I can reach people. Bonds can be formed between people. My favorite part of this journey, so far, is how supportive everyone has been. Some people support me because they love bluegrass music or because we share our faith. Watching everyone come together and seeing the unity has been incredible and humbling.”

When asked what affect she hopes American Idol will have on her career, Ellen answered, “I don’t know what God has in store for my life. I just rest in the knowledge of God and know that His plan is best. I have really enjoyed the exposure this opportunity has given my family. I’ve also enjoyed getting to represent bluegrass music. I hope to keep growing in faith and trusting that God has it under control. I’m just going to enjoy it thoroughly.”

What message Ellen would send to other young people thinking of an American Idol audition? “Stay true to who you are as a performing artist and go for it! I have an incredibly strong, supportive family and I am incredibly blessed to be doing what I’m doing. Just go for it.”

As of the writing of this article, America knows Ellen Petersen has made it through Hollywood Week and through Group Night. From thousands of hopefuls, she is among the top contestants left from the original 218 who made it to Hollywood. We’ll just have to tune into Fox on Wednesday and Thursday nights at 7PM Central Time to find out what happens next.

No matter the outcome on Fox, we Ozark folks know who we think is the next American Idol. This girl from the Little Opry is a pretty big deal!

February 15, 2015