They want to hear one more: Retiring Lincoln choir director will lead group on stage for last time with Foreigner

Kelly Hansen recently announced he'll step down as lead singer of the rock band Foreigner after 20 years. Along a similar timeline, Cindy Hagman is retiring after 23 years directing the choir at Lincoln High School. They'll share the stage one last time Saturday night, June 21, at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Wheatland, with Hagman directing the Lincoln choir as it sings backup for the hit Foreigner ballad "I Want to Know What Love Is." Hard Rock Wheatland is Foreigner's last California concert on the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Celebration Tour. Foreigner was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2024. This will be the fourth time Hagman will lead her choir onto the stage with Foreigner. She says she and Hansen are "on the same page. He's so good at inspiring togetherness, humanity and music." Foreigner has worked with the Grammy Foundation and Shriners Hospital for more than 15 years. The band reaches out to area choirs for the opportunity to accompany the legendary band and perform as rock stars in front of fans dancing and singing along, waving their arms and pumping their fists, if for only one magical, memory-making song. In return, Foreigner donates money to the choirs to help fund their programs. "We get the better end of the deal," Hansen said in an interview with the Lincoln News Messenger, estimating the number of choir performances to be "in the hundreds" over 15 years. "We get to see the looks on their faces when they're on the stage for the first time." Said Hagman, "Fortunately for me, they let the director go up on stage with the choir. What a rush that is, looking out at 20,000 people with their cell phones. With these kids, it's been life changing. Who gets to do that? What average person gets to do that?" Hansen said the band shares the musical arrangement of the song with the choir, and each choir rehearses on its own leading up to Foreigner's local appearance. A rehearsal will also be held at Hard Rock for how the choir will enter the stage and where they will stand when they sing. "It's very well-lubricated," Hansen says. "There's a lot of cell-phone snapping." Says Hagman, "We sing the melody with the band and sing the chorus. It's easy, it's very melodic. It works out really well. Every time, it's worked out perfect." Lincoln choirs aren't exactly rock-star world travelers like Foreigner, but they've been around and crossed oceans. Hagman says her choirs have performed at Carnegie Hall twice, in Europe twice, at Pearl Harbor and Disneyland "countless times." "I've had a really amazing 23-year run," she says. "It's really great to close it out with Foreigner on stage." Hagman recalls the first time Lincoln's choir performed with Foreigner in 2017. Dylan Johnston was in the choir, described by Hagman as "an old-time rocker" who played guitar. Their library included Queen's legendary song "Bohemian Rhapsody." "For this kid to go out with Foreigner on stage was life-changing for him," Hagman said. Literally. Johnston is now the lead singer for the Tom Petty cover band Heavy Petty. Fans can next see Heavy Petty on Saturday, June 28, at High-Hand Brewery in Loomis. Foreigner performed recently on The Voice, when Hansen announced he's ending his 20-year run with the band. "I'm going to be with this band through October," he told the News Messenger. "I've been in this band 20 years, in the business 50 years. I want to do other things nine months of the year. Twenty years straight, it takes a lot of your life. The band will still continue. I want to celebrate. It's going to be emotional. It's going to be fun." Foreigner rhythm guitarist Luis Maldonado will become the new voice of the band. Lincoln's choir has worn jeans and tees in past performances with Foreigner, though Hagman has her "fingers crossed" they'll gather enough money to buy Foreigner shirts.