Payson Meistrich
New York, New York, United States | Established. Jan 01, 2018
Music
Press
Wonderama TV and Jazz at Lincoln Center teamed up to present the Summer Jam Spectacular as “Count Me In 2020” kicked off at Hofstra University on Thursday, July 25th. The event was an action-packed interactive entertainment experience for kids featuring music, games, and prizes alongside reminders of the importance of being counted in the 2020 U.S. Census. Nassau County Comptroller Jack Schnirman helped kick off the event along with performers Edwrds, AmeliaRose, King Roscoe, Amya Roxxstar, Emmanuel Ramos, Payson Meitrich, Jazz at Lincoln Center Trio, and Makuta.
Daytime Emmy nominated host, David Osmond, stresses the importance of the upcoming census. “Kids 5 and under are the least likely demographic to be counted. What better way than to have these kids go home and tell Mom and Dad, Hey, our voice counts, count me in!” In fact, it’s so important that Wonderama is getting the word out in English and Spanish. - Wonderamatv.com
When all the annual Pride celebrations were canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic, Lisa and Jaimee Rizzo knew they had to do something. So, they got to planning.
In just a few short weeks, the married couple, and mothers to 10-month-old Carmella, put together their first-ever Park to Show Pride event – a drive-in style celebration of Pride month in the parking lot at Paramus Park Mall.
On Sunday, also the anniversary of the start of the Stonewall Riots, the culmination of their planning came to fruition: dozens of cars decorated with rainbow flags and with slogans like “Love Wins” scrawled on them lined the mall’s parking lot; young families and friends danced in between cars; and droves came out to celebrate in a unique way how far the LGBTQ+ community has come and how far it still has to go.
“If this is just a small start of something that we can do to give back to our community and sort of bring light to our local community in Bergen County – because there’s not really anything like this up here, and there really hasn’t been – we’re excited to shed light in our own local community,” Jaimee Rizzo said.
The two-hour-long event came from an idea the Rizzos had when attending a drive-by birthday celebration. It eventually blossomed into something more.
The event featured a make-shift DJ booth near the entrance of the mall, where DJ Nikki Lions entertained attendees. Toward the end of the event, Payson, an up-and-coming singer based in New York, performed a powerful rendition of Cyndi Lauper’s “True Colors,” as well as her own original songs.
Speakers who work closely with the LGBTQ+ community across the state — including the heads of the TAC Bergen LGBTQ Teen Lounge Center in Westwood, described as a safe space for youth to be themselves, and the Jersey Shore chapter of PFLAG, a nonprofit that offers all kinds of community support — addressed the crowd, sharing personal stories of coming together. - NorthJersey.com
Discography
Bad for Me (Harry Styles)
Made Me Insane
Photos
Bio
Payson Meistrich is an indie pop singer/songwriter based in New York City. She began her singing career when she was given the solo in her 3rd grade classmate's playground rendition of School of Rock, and was so addicted to the attention she got that she never stopped. Since then, she has been classically vocally trained, obtained a degree in music from George Washington University, garnered over 250,000 streams on her first single, Made Me Insane, joined the creative team for an upcoming Broadway show, and faced the crushing disappointment from her family that she did not choose to go to law school. She has performed professionally all over D.C. (including at the White House, Pentagon, and FBI) and also throughout the tri-state area (including at the YNVS Showcase, at multiple iconic New York venues, and on Wonderama). Her most recent performance was at Consumption Park’s officially sanctioned Super Bowl Event in Phoenix, Arizona. Her greatest musical influences are Halsey, Taylor Swift, Billie Eilish, SZA, Ryn Weaver, and Stevie Nicks, mostly due to their impeccable songwriting, production and vocal talent, but also because there is nothing that brings her greater joy than women profiting off their breakups. She has spent the past few years recording and performing, as well as working tirelessly on her passion project—a narrative-based album that blends music and television mediums to elevate and connect the story of each song to the highest and most cohesive level. Most recently, she released her second single, Bad for Me (Harry Styles), a bouncy pop anthem that celebrates her love for Harry Styles and all men who resemble him; despite how they treat her. She is currently working and training in New York, balancing recording her first EP and trying to find a reasonable apartment to live in—she's not sure which is harder at this point.
Band Members
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