PEORIA, Ill. (WMBD) — It’s something Liv Warfield never thought would happen.
But there she was, holding a street sign bearing her name, as her parents, Bessie and Owen, looked on with pride.
The R&B singer had performed with Prince and received the golden buzzer from Simon Cowell on America’s Got Talent.
But now, her name is etched forever in her hometown on an honorary street sign.
On Tuesday morning, city officials proclaimed the southeast corner of Missouri Avenue and War Memorial Drive, across from the entrance to Peoria Stadium, as “Liv Warfield Way.”
“Peoria is my foundation,” Warfield said, standing on the street where she grew up and just blocks from her childhood home. “Everything I’ve learned, everything that I am, I still am, is from this city. I feel like I carry that everywhere.
“Peoria is such a, such a different, beautiful place. We have a beautiful community here,” she said.
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Warfield was a student-athlete at Peoria Notre Dame, later receiving a track scholarship to Portland State University. While in college, she fell in love with singing and decided to make a career out of it.
She signed on to be a vocalist in the New Power Generation, Prince’s band, and toured with them from 2009 to 2012.
Three solo albums later, and a nomination for BET’s Best New Artist award, she’s performed all over the world. Warfield has also collaborated with musicians Stevie Wonder and Nancy Wilson.
It’s not the first time Peoria has recognized her. In 2014, then Mayor Jim Ardis declared May 10 “Liv Warfield Day.”
“It’s a dream,” Warfield said about her recognition. “It’s an honest-to-God dream that I feel like I manifested secretly in my heart.”
She’s sticking around her hometown for a few days, as she’s performing alongside the Peoria Symphony Orchestra on April 17 at the Peoria Civic Center.
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