Countdown Seaside LIVE with Jacob Jeffries Band, Brendan James & Tony Lucca

Seaside is ready to kick off the new year with a bang and a lot of great music at the 5th Annual Countdown Seaside: A New Year’s Eve Celebration! Everyone's invited on Dec. 31 to experience a family-friendly party featuring live entertainment, kid’s art projects, street performers and an absolutely spectacular fireworks display over the Gulf of Mexico. Festivities begin at 6 p.m. and last until the last firework lights up the sky.

Especially for the kids, Abrakadoodle will be on hand from 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. offering unique art projects as part of the New Year’s Celebration. There’s no cost to participate in these projects, which include making celebratory noisemakers, as well as a time capsule in which families will be able to place New Year’s wishes and resolutions. Seaside will also have face painters, balloon sculptors, stilt walkers, jugglers and street magicians to get both the young and young-at-heart in the festive spirit.

In addition, spectators will be entertained in the final hours of 2012 by a variety of singers/songwriters ranging from fresh Americana Rock ‘n Roll to Pop to Folk. The celebration kicks off in Seaside’s Amphitheater with a performance by Brendan James, a piano-based singer/songwriter from New Hampshire at 6 p.m., followed by the Jacob Jeffries Band, fronted by a gifted pianist that gives a refreshing taste to the music generation of today taking the stage at 8:30 p.m. Then headliner Tony Lucca, who captured America’s hearts by becoming a finalist on NBC’s The Voice earlier this year, will perform at 10:30 p.m.

 Lucca’s life-long immersion in music and his ever-deepening life experiences have resulted in a potently affecting body of work. His lyrics and vocal quality are instantly identifiable, even to those who have heard his music once or twice. Raised in Waterford, Michigan, Lucca began singing at age 3; by 12 he was writing and playing in Detroit-area bands. As a teen, he lived in Orlando, Florida, where he worked for four seasons on the Disney Channel’s “Mickey Mouse Club” alongside such future superstars as Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, and *NSYNC's Justin Timberlake and JC Chasez.

As a result of his work on The Voice, Maroon 5 front man and The Voice coach, GRAMMY-Award winning recording artist Adam Levine announced recently that The Voice finalist and “Team Adam” member Tony Lucca has signed to 222 Records. Lucca is set to release his album next year on Levine’s label.

In 2011, Lucca appeared as himself on NBC’s Parenthood performing his song “Like Love.” Lucca was also tapped to appear in friend Justin Timberlake’s 901 tequila commercial spot. His songs have been featured on TV’s Friday Night Lights, Brothers & Sisters, Shark, and Felicity and in Kevin Costner’s feature Open Range. He has been seen on E! Entertainment Television and A&E, and performed numerous times on NBC’s Last Call With Carson Daly. Over the course of his career, Lucca has shared stages with *NSYNC, Marc Anthony, Macy Gray, Johnny Lang, and Sara Bareilles.

At the stroke of midnight, Seaside will then light up the skies over the Gulf of Mexico and welcome 2013 with its exciting fireworks display from a barge in front of Bud & Alley's. Colorful bursts of light will be visible from the beach, as well as in Seaside Amphitheater in Central Square. A synchronized music soundtrack will be simulcast in the Amphitheater, as well as on 30A Radio (30ARadio.org or 107.1FM). Watching fireworks over the Gulf has truly become a South Walton tradition, and Seaside’s event promises one of the very best views along 30A!

Brendan James (6:00-8:00PM) - Brendan James is a piano-based singer/songwriter from New Hampshire who spent his early music career playing at New York City open mics. He self-produced and released an EP, The Ballroom Break-in, and later signed with Decca Records (Alison Krauss, Willie Nelson, Sting, Sugarland) in 2008. He has released two studio albums with the label. His debut album, The Day is Brave, was released in 2008, while his self-titles sophomore album, Brendan James, came out in 2010. He has toured to support the albums, including a national tour with John Mayer. His music takes inspiration from 1970s artists James Taylor, Bob Dylan, and Stevie Wonder, as well as more current artists like Ryan Adams and Death Cab For Cutie. Brendan’s most recent album, Hope in Transition, was released in July of 2012 via Rock Ridge Music.

Jacob Jeffries Band (8:30-10:00PM) - Jacob Jeffries, age 24, is a gifted pianist and singer/songwriter playing all original music (most often compared to Ben Folds and Jason Mraz) with guitarist, Jimmy Powers V, and drummer, Eric Jackowitz. He started playing the piano at the age of five. By ten he was writing original music, and at the ripe age of 17, Warner Chappell offered him a publishing deal and Baldwin Pianos an endorsement opportunity that Jacob proudly accepted. At age 20, Jacob began recording with Grammy Award-winning producers Sebastian Krys and Dan Warner and the group hasn’t stopped working together since. He won the Florida Grammy Showcase for Best New Artist, and while on tour, has opened for such well-known artists as Sugar Ray, Gin Blossoms, Eric Hutchinson, Sister Hazel and Dashboard Confessional. The band’s most recent album, Tell Me Secrets, is full of soulful, catchy hooks, with a number of epic, up-tempo tracks.