Members of the PS 22 Chorus covering Adele's "Rolling in the Deep"
Who says you have to grow up to become famous, a part of something huge--make it? We're not talking about Miley Lohans, but more along the lines of gaining worldwide recognition for doing something you truly love in its purest state? Could it be possible to meet and gain the admiration of your idols at the age of 10?
If you're a fifth grader at Public School 22 of Graniteville Staten Island, the answer is yes. You know the PS 22 chorus: you've watched their Gaga YouTube videos, heard them on Passion Pit's debut album Manners (The Reeling, Little Secrets, Let Your Love Grow Tall to be exact), and most definitely saw them at the 83rd Academy Awards standing on stage with Anne Hathaway and everyone who won an Oscar.
The chorus was started back in 2000 by educator Greg Breinberg, a man who comes from a musical background and whose ardent love for music led him to incorporate works by popular artists and creative cover-songs into the choir's repertoire. This and a little blogging would soon propel the group of fifth graders to becoming the most famous school chorus in the world. Along with the few achievements mentioned above, the chorus has met, performed for, and sometimes with superstars such as Beyonce, Lady Gaga and Tory Amos, and can claim dozens of other celebrities as fans. They've appeared on every network and on numerous TV shows, the most notable being 360 with Anderson Cooper and the Oprah Winfrey Show, and recently took home the 2010 Webby Award for Artist of the Year.
As you can already tell, this blog post will not gain the PS 22 chorus more recognition than they already have...but it's not about that. It's about the inspirational message they send. The goal of fame, more importantly mass recognition, is shared by many in the artistic and creative circles. As I watch young talents worry about how to achieve this, rearranging their lifestyles and changing their values, appearances, and locations in order to achieve it, I am overwhelmingly moved by a group of small children who have reached this goal by staying 100% true to themselves. They like to sing, so they joined the school chorus--it's that simple. Even their adult music teacher and choir director remains the same humbled music-lover he was when he uploaded the first PS 22 video onto the internet.
PS 22 performing Lykke Li's "Breaking it Up" at the Gridiron Gala last month
People are constantly seeking ways to alter themselves for success in the rat race. We're all guilty of that on some level. It's comforting to know that a 10 year-old has learned that she can win by being herself, way before she looses her innocence and self-reliance to the game. In one of PS 22's videos, Passion Pit lead singer and mastermind Michael Angelakos comforts a young student who was just called stupid by one of his classmates. Angelakos tells the boy that everyday the singer is called stupid, ugly, and annoying by hundreds of people for his musical style and what he does, but he believes in himself and doesn't let it stop him or change him. As someone who went to high school with him, I can vouch that Michael has stayed true to the same strange sound he was making back then, except now he's famous for it. Individuality will always take you far.
I solute the PS 22 chorus for teaching this lesson, and can only hope the students retain it as they get older. In that sense, I hope they never grow up.
And I hope we never grow up too.
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