VOLKSWAGEN ROCKS THE ‘D’ DURING GUITAR CONTEST AT iLOUNGE IN PONTIAC
Metro Detroit Volkswagen dealers “Rockin the D” guitar contest shaked, rattled and rolled their audience - Winner took home a one-year lease on a 2007 VW Wolfsburg Jetta



By: Latrisha Jackson





You didn’t see Slash or John Mayer shredding strings on a First Act guitar like those featured in recent V-dubs rock commercials, but plenty of musicians played their hearts out on stage, during “Rockin’ the D,” a guitar solo contest sponsored by Metro Detroit Volkswagen dealers, held on Saturday.

More than 200 people crowded downtown Pontiac’s Clutch Cargo’s exclusive iLounge for an evening of competition and fun. Ten finalists competed on stage and as the night took flight, two well-known local bands, Not For Sal and Paper Street Saints performed during the contest.

"The band was pumped to do it and loves that the event was unique and breaks the clutter,” said Matt Marini, manager for Not For Sal.

The 10 finalists competed on stage and had only minutes to set up, sound check and perform to a selection of pre-recorded tracks. Their performances were rated by a panel of judges who were well-known local musicians.

Al Carmichael, 55, of Sylvan Lake, Michigan was the grand prize winner of “Rockin’ the D” with a blues/rock solo that wooed the judges and crowd. Carmichael was able to win a one-year lease on a 2007 Volkswagen Jetta Wolfsburg edition model (MSRP $20,435). The new Jetta comes with a built-in auxiliary jack, to plug in a custom First Act guitar and play it through the car's stereo system, as seen on the TV commercials.

Second place winner, blues stylist Dave Mazzara, 48, of Clinton Township won a gift certificate from Guitar Center and a custom First Act Guitar. Third place winner Patrick Curiel, 37, of Detroit won two tickets to see hard rock band Disturbed, two guitar effects pedals and a signed Lenny Kravitz flat.

Prize packages were furnished by Metro Detroit Volkswagen Dealers, Guitar Center, 101.1 FM WRIF, Audio Cafe and Axis Music Academy.

Other proud sponsors of “Rockin the D” included The Detroit News, Axis Music Academy, Guitar Center, 101.1 FM-WRIF, iLounge, Audio Café, Small Plates restaurant and O2 Media Design.

For more information, visit www.detroitvwdealers.com. To learn more about the opening bands, visit Not For Sal (www.myspace.com/NotForSal) and Paper Street Saints (www.paperstreetsaints.com).

Volkswagen of America, Inc.
Founded in 1955, Volkswagen of America, Inc. is headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan. It is a subsidiary of Volkswagen AG, headquartered in Wolfsburg, Germany. Volkswagen is one of the world’s largest producers of passenger cars and Europe’s largest automaker. Volkswagen sells the Rabbit, New Beetle, New Beetle convertible, GTI, Jetta, GLI, Passat, Passat wagon, Eos, Touareg and Phaeton through more than 600 independent U.S. dealers. Visit Volkswagen of America online at www.vw.com.

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