Blair graduated from Southeast in 1997 with a bachelor of arts degree in mass communication, specializing in advertising. He currently works as a financial advisor with Renaissance Financial in St. Louis while pursuing his music career in his spare time.

He spent much of his childhood singing and performing, even performing with the Mid-America Children's Choir for President Ronald Reagan. During his time at Southeast, Blair demonstrated his musical diversity by entertaining a variety of audiences. He performed for University audiences and around Cape Girardeau with his own band, in addition to performing with the University Choir and touring Europe with the Missouri Ambassadors of Music.

Blair, who sings lead vocals and plays acoustic guitar and harmonica, has experienced some success in his music career, having released two country music albums and a video since 1998. His first album, "Face to Face," included his debut single "Who Do You Think You Are," which rose to the number one spot on the Independent Country Music Charts in February 1999.

Two other singles from the album, "Why Ask Why" and "Just Like You," also climbed the independent charts to the number one spot in 1999.

Blair earned the New Horizon Award at the 1999 Independent Golden Music Awards in Nashville, Tenn., for his single "Who Do You Think You Are." He also was nominated for the Best New Male Vocalist and the Best New Rising Star categories.

His second album, "A Tribute to the Heroes of September 11, 2001," was released on July 4, 2002, with a portion of the proceeds being donated to the victims of the Sept. 11 attacks. Blair also filmed a video in 2002 for his hit "Just Like You," a song he wrote for his father.

Blair plans to debut his latest single, "State To State," for the first time live when he performs at Camp's. The new single was written by Keith Evans, a songwriter currently attending Southeast.

"I receive 100 songs a year from songwriters who want me to sing their material, but most of the time, it's just not my style or I don't relate to the song," Blair said. He agreed, however, to listen to Evans' song. "About two hours after I'd listened to it, I found myself humming the chorus in my head," Blair said. "That's what a good song is - something that sticks with you. So I pulled it out and started listening to it again," he said.

Blair is enthusiastic about performing in Cape Girardeau again. "It's very exciting for me to be able to be able to head back to my alma mater to perform," he said. "I hope this turns into a great homecoming."

For more information about Blair, visit his Web site at www.chrisblair.com.