Jordan Francis gives back, 12-year-old girl gets her wish

For our book, “7 Secrets of Celebrity Success,” I’ve written on this blog about including a chapter on charity work and why it’s important for celebs. I wrote about Chad Michael Murray and his work for Habitat for Humanity, Heather Morris and her time with Make-A-Wish and Michael Welch and his experience with Kids With a Cause.

Well, in Buffalo last month, an opportunity opened up for Make-A-Wish of Western New York and Live Starring You to team up and bring in another young entertainer—Jordan Francis.
Jordan, a dancer, actor and singer, is best known for his role in Disney’s “Camp Rock”

Dallas, a 12-year-old girl, suffered from a rare form of bone cancer, and had to undergo a painful surgery two years ago. Her first wish was to meet the Jonas Brothers, but she got sick and that didn’t work out. So she asked to write and record a song with a celebrity. The Make-A-Wish Foundation, a national organization that grants wishes to children with life-threatening medical conditions, called my coauthor, Tim O’Shei and he got in touch with Jordan.

Jordan, a native of Toronto, Ont. came to Buffalo and met Dallas at the Goo Goo Dolls’ Buffalo recording studio, GCR Audio. Dallas recorded three songs with Jordan and Buffalo recording artist Juliet Shatkin. In Dallas’ songwriting debut, she wrote “Face the Music” (with music by Matthew Crane and Joe Donohue).

Dallas got the complete star treatment—a VIP party, photo shoot—and soon she’ll have her own CD!

Nowadays, Dallas and Tim are working on writing “Breaking From Home,” a song inspired from “Live! Starring … You!” the book.

Check out the Facebook Live Starring You fan page for more updates on the new song, upcoming workshops with other celebs and more photos from Dallas’ and Jordan’s time in the studio.
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#!/pages/Live-Starring-You/100414482359?ref=ts

Also look for Jordan and Dallas’ story to be part of “7 Secrets of Celebrity Success!”

Background on the book:

My name is Shannon Holfoth. I’m from Buffalo, N.Y. and I’m a senior at St. Bonaventure University studying journalism and political science.

I’m working with Tim O’Shei, the author of the children’s novel “Live! Starring … You!,” on a nonfiction sequel to the book called, “7 Secrets of Celebrity Success.”

Live Starring You puts the reader in the shoes of a teen celebrity for a day. They experience what it’s like to become famous and what life is really like for celebrities who deal with the tabloids, constant attention, and balancing friends and family time with their hectic Hollywood schedules.

‘7 Secrets’ will draw from interviews with young celebrities and give readers a peak into the aspects of stardom that you don’t often hear about.

The book will cover things like, how to handle your money, how to deal with jealous peers and how to survive the pressure of Hollywood industries.

Through Live Starring You, Tim also runs writing, goal-setting, public speaking and performance workshops. Check out http://www.livestarringyou.com/ for more info or check our facebook page for book and event updates (http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Live-Starring-You/100414482359?ref=ts)


Look for the book to come out in summer 2010!