CHINA GROVE — When legendary rock band Foreigner takes the stage in Charlotte next week, the crowd should be warmed up following a performance from the Carson High School Honors Choir.

Megan Wyatt’s choir was selected through a radio contest to open for the famous band after submitting an audition tape of their rendition of James Taylor’s ‘Your Smiling Face.’

Despite being born almost 30 years after Foreigner formed, the students are stoked about performing at the PNC Music Pavilion and its 19,500-person capacity.

Senior Celia Sifford admitted that she knows a little bit about Foreigner.

“I know that their songs are awesome, and we get to perform for them,” Sifford said.

Junior Makenna Hinson added, “I am pretty excited about it. It’s a big opportunity that not a lot of people will ever get, to perform with a famous singing group.”

Hinson and Sifford joined their choir mates at Carson High on Thursday. School is not in session yet, but choir practice was in full swing.

Thankfully, they already have some practice with the song they will be performing since “Your Smiling Face” earned them the spot to begin with.

They will also perform Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believing,” of sing-along fame.

In preparation for the concert, Thursday was a full practice day for the choir.

“We are rehearsing from 10 (a.m.) to 3 (p.m.),” Sifford said. “We are going to have an all-day rehearsal and work on all the songs that we have prepared. From there, we will see what else they want us to do.”

All the time and effort will be worth it come next Wednesday.

“We get to go backstage,” Sifford said. “I don’t know if we will be backstage with (the band), so fingers crossed we get to meet them.”

The Carson High Honor Choir’s participation in a Foreigner concert is part of a program the band got involved with 16 years ago that helps finance underfunded art departments around the country.

Check out the Salisbury Post weekend edition for the full story on how Carson’s choir is bringing hits to the stage and bucks back to the classroom.