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Wednesday, January 22, 2003

By Margaret Smykla, Tri-State Sports & News Service

After hearing Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech, Margot Bingham knew she had to write a song about the man who had made such a difference in so many lives, including hers.

	Margot Bingham performs her song tribute, "In My Dreams," at Carnegie Mellon University during a celebration of Martin Luther King's birthday on Monday. (Tony Tye, Post-Gazette)

"I come from a culturally diverse background," writes the 14-year-old on her Web site, www.margotb.com, "and I love living in a world where we all have that choice."

Inspired, but lacking a beat, the Scott teenager in August visited Swissville street ministry musician Chuck McKinnon, who played several beats until she heard one she liked for the song she had in mind.

She wrote lyrics in a few hours, then rewrote, revised, and rewrote again for the next several months. Weirton, W.Va.-based producer Rick Witkowski and B.E. Taylor, lead singer with the B.E. Taylor Group, helped with the final release.

The result was "In My Dreams," a song tribute to the slain civil rights leader that she performed Monday at Carnegie Mellon University as part of the school's annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day celebration.

Permission was also granted to use the song in tributes at the Musical Celebration in North Carolina, Bates College in Maine, WZIP-FM at the University of Akron, and other sites.

Margot, a freshman at the Pittsburgh High School for the Creative and Performing Arts, is the daughter of former Steeler Craig Bingham and wife Lynne, from whom she has also drawn inspiration. "Mom and Dad say 'never give up,' even in hard times. Just keep on going."

Margot is also the reigning National Miss Black Teen, for which she was judged on her looks, poise and personality at her first pageant in Philadelphia in April.

As part of her reign, she volunteers for Make-A-Wish and Children's Hospital. She also visits schools to talk to students about the importance of setting goals.

But music, particularly singing, remains her love and goal. Her role model is the late R&B star Aaliyah, who also appeared in films, a career path not without its appeal to Margot. Broadway, too, looms as a possibility.

"I don't just want to do one style of music," said Margot, who has been taking singing lessons since she was 3 years old. "I want to do everything."