at a local retirement home, which she has stated helped her to overcome her stage fright. Regarding her musical influence, Kristine W fell in love with house music after hearing it played frequently in Canada when her mother would perform at resorts there. From an early age, it was clear Kristine had an aptitude for performing. Throughout middle and high school, Kristine frequently competed in talent shows, and she won numerous awards in the Northwest after competing in jazz choir ensembles as an improvisational soloist. At age 16, she won a state talent show singing the Donna Summer song, “Last Dance”. This led her to enter pageants, which she excelled at. After winning the titles of Miss Tri-Cities and Miss Washington, Kristine competed in the Miss America pageant, where she won a preliminary swimsuit and NFT award. Her winnings were designated for education, so she enrolled at the University of Nevada in Las Vegas and began pursuing her musical dreams. Her mentor, John R. Lewis, helped Kristine W to form a band called Kristine and the Sting, with whom she recorded an indie album called Show and Tell. The band was a local favorite, amassing numerous awards. After the release of Show and Tell, Kristine began traveling to California to work with an R&B production house. The songs she would record with them eventually became the material for her first album, The Perfect Beat, self-released in 1994. Career 1991–2000: "Feel What You Want" – Stronger It was in Las Vegas that Kristine found success headlining her own show at the Las Vegas Hilton, winning the “Las Vegas Entertainer of the Year” award for several years. After the Hilton tore down their 200-seat live venue and replaced it with a 500-seat nightclub in 1995, Kristine continued to perform for 2 to 3 shows per night, leading a 14-piece band. The act was called Kristine W's Come See the Music, and they performed until 1999, by which time their residency at the Vegas Hilton spanned 8 years in total. On June 28, 1999, the governor and entertainment director for the city of Las Vegas officially recognized Kristine as having performed more live shows at the Las Vegas Hilton than any other performer in its history, including Elvis Presley, and officially designated June 28 "Kristine W Day" in the state of Nevada. During her residency, the president of a British label called Champion