Knoxville teen crowned Miss Tennessee Teen USA

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) - Blye Allen has only been doing pageants for two years, but she’s already been named Miss Tennessee Teen USA and will now be representing Knoxville and Tennessee at the national competition later this year.

Allen is a sophomore at Christian Academy of Knoxville. She said she wants to use her platform to raise awareness about teen mental health.

“I really hope to just spread awareness about teen mental health, because I think it’s at a crisis level at the moment and I want to go to schools and share with principals, counselors, parents, and teachers -- ways to be able to help the kids get the right care if they’re in a bad mental state,” she said.

She said she felt privileged to be a role model for younger girls and teens and wanted to encourage anyone who is interested to get involved in pageants.

“It made me so much more confident in myself because the first pageant I ever did I got up on stage and was wobbling around like Bambi in my heels and I couldn’t talk to anyone on stage because I would have a stutter in my voice so I’ve been able to really grow on that, and it’s helped me speak on stage to a bunch of people and be better in interviews and be able to walk on stage better.”

She will go on to compete in Miss Teen USA later this year.

Copyright 2023 WVLT. All rights reserved.