McDonald's Restaurant Employees Compete for Prestigious "Voice of McDonald's" Title

OAK BROOK, IL--(Marketwire - Dec 15, 2011) - McDonald's announced today 16 talented restaurant employees from: Australia, Philippines, New Zealand, Germany, Sweden, Russia, Switzerland, Brazil, Argentina, Puerto Rico, Canada and the United States are semi-finalists in the Voice of McDonald's global singing competition. The semi-finalists are one step closer to becoming the next Voice of McDonald's champion as they descend on Orlando, Fla., U.S., in April for the experience of a lifetime complete with professional vocal and performance coaching. They'll also receive advice on launching a music career from industry-leading professionals. Past judges have included: Lady GaGa's manager Troy Carter, Grammy award-winning singer/songwriter Richard Marx, Grammy award-winning producer Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins, R&B singer/songwriter Ne-Yo, Grammy award-winning R&B singer Estelle, prominent entertainment attorney and brand marketing strategist Ken Hertz and salsa singer Tito Nieves.

"Watching these talented employees reach for their dreams has been a tremendous source of inspiration and pride for our brand," said Rich Floersch, executive vice president and chief human resources officer, McDonald's Corporation. "McDonald's has always been proud of the opportunities we offer our people and Voice of McDonald's is a great way to inspire our restaurant employees by providing them with this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."

The Voice of McDonald's is a worldwide contest to discover, recognize and reward the most talented singers among McDonald's 1.7 million restaurant employees. This fourth edition of the competition started with an initial field of more than 20,000 entries, included more than 70 country contests and 30 live performances before the popular singing competition called on consumers in five markets and top music industry professionals to narrow the field to 16 contestants.

The 16 global semi-finalists are:

APMEA (Asia-Pacific/Middle East & Africa):

• Chrislyn Hamilton - Brisbane, Australia
• Florence Rafols - Mankira, Philippines
• Zac Taylor - Whakatane, New Zealand
• Logan Walker - Auckland, New Zealand

EUROPE:

• Kajsa Hallin - Orby, Sweden
• Ksenia Kraynova - Ivanovo, Russia
• Gil Meidar - Luzern, Switzerland
• Dyscem Müldener - Munich, Germany

LATIN AMERICA:

• Giovanne Pereira - Belém, Brazil
• Pablo Rojas - Buenos Aires, Argentina
• Lyam Soto - Fajardo, Puerto Rico
• Will Torres - Cabo Rojo, Puerto Rico

NORTH AMERICA:

• Israel Moore, Okemos, Michigan
• Maureen Recalde, Tehachapi, California
• Stephanie Savage, Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada
• Kendall Titiml, Wayne, Nebraska

About the Competition

• Monday, April 23: The contestants will begin their star-studded experience by receiving expertise on vocal coaching, stage presence, choreography, along with hair, makeup and wardrobe consultation. Later in the evening, the first round of the final competition will be held and the contestants will be narrowed down to four finalists -- one from APMEA, Europe, Latin America and North America.
• Tuesday, April 24: These talented McDonald's employees will have access to a panel of internationally-renowned vocal and music industry professionals who will offer advice about pursuing careers in the music industry.
• Thursday, April 26: The semi-finalists will compete in front of a live audience of nearly 15,000 McDonald's owners/operators and suppliers attending McDonald's 2012 Worldwide Convention.

Prizes
The Voice of McDonald's grand prize winner will take home $25,000, record a voice-over in an upcoming DreamWorks^® Animation movie and work with a music-industry executive to produce a record demo. The second prize winner receives $17,500, third prize winner receives $15,000, fourth prize winner receives $12,500, and all other contestants will win $3,000. One finalist from each area of the world also will appear in a McDonald's commercial. All finalists will receive $500 for a celebration party with co-workers at their restaurants and a $1,000 donation in their names for their local Ronald McDonald House Charities or other children's charity.

To learn more about each of the Voice of McDonald's finalists and watch their music videos, please visit http://www.voiceofmcdonalds.com. You also can join the dialogue by following the links to the Voice of McDonald's pages on facebook, twitter, and flickr.

About Voice of McDonald's
Voice of McDonald's is the largest global singing competition of its kind, open to the 1.7 million McDonald's restaurant employees around the world. More than 2,500 employees entered the inaugural competition, which kicked off in 2005. In 2007, more than 3,600 singers entered Voice of McDonald's II; in 2009, more than 10,000 employees entered Voice of McDonald's III; and in 2011 more than 20,000 employees entered Voice of McDonald's IV.

About McDonald's
McDonald's is the world's leading global foodservice retailer with more than 33,000 locations serving approximately 64 million customers in 119 countries each day. More than 80% of McDonald's restaurants worldwide are owned and operated by independent local men and women. To learn more about the company, please visit www.aboutmcdonalds.com and follow us on Facebook (http://www.facebook.com/mcdonaldscorp) and Twitter (http://www.twitter.com/mcdonaldscorp).

(C) 2011 McDonald's