The Mohawk Valley Community College Cultural Series has announced its headlining event for the Spring 2023 semester: a concert by pop singer-songwriter Jax at 7 p.m. Friday, Feb. 17, in Schafer Theater at MVCC’s Utica Campus. Tickets, which go on sale at 10 a.m. Jan. 23, 2023, are $15 general, $10 for MVCC employees, and free for MVCC students.

A pop singer with a soulful sound, Jax first rose to fame in 2015 as a contestant on Season 14 of “American Idol.” Raised in New Jersey by way of New York, Jax got her start early, performing a variety of genres. At 18, she developed cancer above her vocal cords, which returned after a couple of months of remission as she relocated to Los Angeles to pursue her music career. Left unable to sing herself, Jax turned to songwriting for others and found industry success behind the scenes. As her ability to perform returned, Jax needed to pivot yet again when the COVID-19 pandemic struck. This time she turned to social media, posting a hilarious TikTok response to the pop gem “Stacy’s Mom” from “Stacy’s Mom’s Perspective,” which exploded with nearly 9 million views in a few months. She eventually amassed more than 11.7 million followers, more than 1 billion views on the platform, and more than 186 million “likes” to date. With a massive online audience, Jax began sharing her original music in late 2020 to an overwhelmingly positive response — ultimately leading to her signing with Atlantic Records.

Her latest single, “Victoria’s Secret,” has become a global anthem for body positivity. The track has made its way onto the Billboard Hot 100 chart, is currently climbing spots on U.S. Top 40 radio, and has over 125 million views on TikTok content surrounding the song. “Victoria’s Secret” follows an incredible year for Jax, arriving on the heels of her ballad “Like My Father,” which has amassed over 100 million streams and was crowned amongst “the best father-daughter dance songs of all time” by The Knot. Her nostalgia-fueled anthem “90s Kids” received over 1 million weekly streams for 21 consecutive weeks. This year also saw Jax take home the iHeartRadio Music Award for TikTok Songwriter of the Year, with her debut full-length project due to arrive in late 2022.

The MVCC Cultural Series is brought to you by MVCC’s Cultural Events Council, in collaboration with MVCC’s Program Board, with significant support from the Student Activity Fee. See the complete series lineup and ticket sales.