First-ever African American woman crowned Miss Tennessee

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) — Brianna Mason, Miss Greene County, was crowned Miss Tennessee on Saturday night.

Mason, 23, is the first African American woman to hold the title in the pageant’s 81-year history. She will go on to represent the state in the Miss America Scholarship Competition.

Brianna is a Nashville native and a first-grade teacher at Murfreesboro City Schools.

She was crowned after winning both the on-stage interview and talent preliminaries, performing a piece called “Piano Fantasy.”