Hannah’s got talent

Freshman vocalist Hannah Bodden participated and made it through cut lists to try out for Americas Got Talent. Although she is a freshmen currently, she tried out as an 11- year- old and again when she was 12. She found a passion for singing at a young age, and it continues to inspire her as she incorporates it into her daily life.

“Singing has been such a huge part in my life,”Bodden said. “I cannot go a day without singing. It is just something that’s a part of me and something that will always be with me.”

With her passion for singing comes the stress and anxiety of performing. Frequently, when people are asked to perform or speak in front of crowds they tend to experience some form of anxiety over the notion of losing their train of thought, getting embarrassed, or losing control over their behavior. While it is very typical for most people to have nerves settle in before the show’s audition, Bodden only being in fifth and sixth grade at the time of her tryouts seemed to have the stress fade away as she stood before the judges.

“I was nervous at first but then in the moment all the nerves went away,” Bodden said. “I just knew that I was here for something I love and I had made it so far to let pre-performance nerves stand in the way.”

For her audition, she sang the song, “I Don’t Know Why” by Norah Jones. Although she chose this jazz song, Bodden likes to venture in vast musical genres and practice in different tones and pitches. She ranges from jazz and pop to blues and R&B.

“Dabbling in different musical context is great because there is always a song for every mood or feeling your going through,” Bodden said.

Bodden’s extensive variety in the music she prefers to sing makes it that much easier for her to integrate her musical side into her everyday life. She states sometimes she will just start singing at random and not even realize it until her mom mentions it.

“I fully intend to take singing further and incorporate it into my life even after high school,” Bodden said. “Singing is so much more than an extra curricular activity or a fun pastime to me. I need music to get through the day.”

While most people take singing as a hobby, Bodden feels strongly about it and wishes to dedicate her entire life to singing and make a career out of it. Since she is only into her first year of high school, a singing career seems distant, although she is working on the progression of her own record while keeping the balance of her school life in mind.

“I am currently in contact with a record label right now, but I have to have my academics stable before I take that extra step,” Bodden said.