HANCEVILLE, Ala. – Wallace State alum Emma Wright has been a loyal follower of the FOX game show “Beat Shazam” since its debut in 2017.
Wright and former Wallace State dual enrollment student Jazmin Bobo are now in the record books as “Beat Shazam” contestant winners.
Wright and Bobo’s appearance on Season 4, Episode 8 of the show, hosted by comedian and actor Jamie Foxx, aired on July 22. The duo won $44,500 in cash by correctly identifying short song snippets. Wright and Bobo defeated a pair of teams over the opening rounds and advanced to the finals, which pits the winning contestants against the Shazam music app.
Shazam was ultimately victorious against Wright and Bobo.
“I’m a huge fan of the show and will forever be thrilled for the opportunity to be a contestant. I’ve performed my entire life and that show was a performance. I love it. I was nervous when we started, but settled in. I was as confident as could be from there,” Wright said. “I’ve always wanted to pursue any entertainment opportunity I could. I was humbled and blessed to represent my hometown, the Cullman area, and my colleges on a national platform.”
Bobo added, “It was a once-in-lifetime experience. Your mind goes blank when you’re on set and the song board and Jamie Foxx are in front of you. In that moment, you feed off your adrenaline until you come back to reality. It was an experience I’ll always cherish. It’s life-changing money at our ages. The love we have received from our communities has been awesome. I continue to receive texts and calls about it.”
Wright is a 2020 Wallace State graduate and was the 2019 Miss Wallace State. Wright, also a former dual enrollment student, is a J.B. Pennington High grad and currently pursuing a biomedical sciences degree at UAB with a pre-med concentration. Her career goal is to work as an emergency room physician. In addition to her time as Miss Wallace State, Wright has also competed on the state level as Miss Center Point and will serve as Miss Historic Springville in 2022.
Bobo is a former Wallace State dual enrollment student from Cold Springs. She was enrolled in the college’s Fast Track program while in high school. She’s also a current student at UAB, pursuing a health care management degree with hopes of ultimately becoming a doctor.
Wright and Bobo had to keep their “Beat Shazam,” appearance and winnings a top secret up until last week’s episode. In fact, they had to be tight-lipped for nearly 15 months. Wright and Bobo traveled to California for the episode’s taping in February 2020, right before the COVID-19 pandemic swept the world.
“We flew back home on a Friday and things were literally beginning to shut down in California the following Monday,” Wright said.
“People have wondered for a while why I went to California for a week last year. I had to pretend it was for a vacation,” Bobo said.
Prior to flying to California, Wright and Bobo spent six months auditioning for the show through Zoom – before Zoom became a popular communication avenue during the pandemic.
As is the objective of the game, Wright and Bobo had to prove their knowledge of song titles during their Zoom auditions with producers. Their engaging personalities and chemistry together were also appealing for the representatives of the show.
“We learned to use Zoom (during auditions) before Zoom was popular. I was at Emma’s house 4-5 times per week during the audition phase, talking to different people from the show. The game is harder on Zoom than in real life,” Bobo said. “As we were competing on Zoom, we once missed a song and Emma hit me on the shoulder. We both lost it and laughed. The producers loved it and thought we had a great bond. Our personalities were important during the tryout.”
Bobo added she and Wright made an effort to promote the value of attending a community college during their auditions.
Once they hit the stage in Los Angeles, among the song titles they correctly identified during their episode was “Bad Guy” by Billie Eilish; “Bang, Bang,” by Ariana Grande, Nicki Minaj and Jesse J and “A Sky Full of Stars,” by Coldplay.
Shazam beat the local duo in the finals by identifying “Friday I’m in Love” by The Cure.
Both women were ecstatic to meet Corinne Foxx, the daughter of Jamie Foxx, who also stars in the game show.
“I’m one of her biggest fans. She approached us after our taping and carried on a casual, normal conversation with us. It was awesome,” Bobo said.
Wright and Bobo met less than two years ago at the Cullman Aquatic Center while both were working as lifeguards and the rest is history.
“It was great to share the moment with one of my best friends. We had a blast throughout the entire process,” Wright said.
Bobo said, “Emma is musically talented in multiple ways. We have the same musical tastes, and it’s one thing that brought us together as friends. It’s incredible we took that aspect of our friendship and cashed it in on a game show,” Bobo said.
“Beat Shazam” airs each Thursday at 7 p.m. on FOX.
Wright and Bobo will split the cash earnings.
To watch Emma’s and Jazmin’s appearance, visit https://www.fox.com/watch/a85c09a5b8ba968348af25f0c11dab26/
