‘Chameleon’ Steals The Show -Wins $10,000

Minnesota has a lot of talented performers that you may have never seen. Friday evening, I had the chance to see six incredible Minnesota bands perform in a fantastic show at Grand Casino in Hinckley.

What started as a fun pub crawl at 7 pm on Friday, September 5th, 2025, turned into a crazy, super fun evening at the Hinkley Event Center, as it slowly began to fill up to watch the incredible bands preparing to compete for a grand prize of $10,000!

CHAMELEON WINS GRAND PRIZE $10,000

I, along with two other judges, was given sheets to judge each one of the bands competing for the grand prize. The winning band chosen by the judges would win $10,000!

There was also an opportunity for fans to vote for their favorite by using a QR code. The band that would be chosen as their favorite would win $6,000. That band could be the same band that won the grand prize, or a completely different one.

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The bands performing in the contest were:

• Ember
• Head The Warning (HTW)
• Headcase
• The Rowdy Gents
• Chameleon
• PullString

EMBER

Each band had its own unique gifts. Ember came out as the first performer to hit the stage, with a fantastic female lead singer in an amazing glitter costume, and other members coming out with masks, and a keyboard player that seemed like someone out of a James Bond movie. They had lots of fun things planned for their show, including lasers on their guitars pointed at the crowd, and a fabulous finish with the lead singer standing on the stand-up bass.

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THE ROWDY GENTS

There were the Rowdy Gents, who had sort of a Stray Cat Strut feel. The lead singer was amazing and also played lead guitar. It was a three-piece band that gave an Elvis-esque feel, bringing rockabilly to the evening with an all-new twist.

H3ADCASE

Headcase was interesting with a Dad and his daughter on lead vocals, and his son playing a mean bass. They had quite a large band and following.

CHAMELEON

All of the bands did a fantastic job. The band that performed 2nd to last, though, was something special.  They were a young group of guys who, from the onset, seemed polite and just happy to have made it to the finals. I'm not sure any of us were expecting what was about to happen.

The three-piece group is called Chameleon, based out of the Ramsey area. Bass player Marek, only 17, Joey on drums and lead vocals, 18, and 23-year-old Porter on lead guitar, had chops beyond their ages.

HANG ON

From one song to the next, they kept the whole place on their feet. It was as if he was born to entertain, and if you go out to see them perform, you'd better hang on, because it's amazing to watch Joey play those drums, while still singing and talking like he's a 20-year veteran!

They performed original material that was really fun to listen to. 'I Don't Care' was one of my favorites, and they ended the show with it. They just brought electricity to the room that hadn't been there before they hit the stage, and to us...they were a clear winner.

Each band had a unique sound, but in the end, it all comes down to the EASE of the performance. These three didn't have to work for it; they just HAD it.

ACCEPTANCE SPEECH

When they were announced as the winners, the guys literally were in shock. They had NO idea what to say. They recently released their debut album, and when they were asked what they were going to do with the $10,000, it sounded like they were planning on using it for their music. Whether that's upgrading their instruments, sound system, lighting, or simply saving it to get in a pro-studio for album two, I can't wait to follow them and see where the dream takes them.

'We released our debut album on all streaming platforms this year!!! It’s called CHAMELEON and we’re super proud of it. We’d also love it if people can follow us on our socials: Instagram: @chameleonbandofficial Facebook: @Chameleon - Band. We’d also love for venues to reach out to us to book us! Our email is: chameleonbandofficial@gmail.com.' ~Chameleon