Child Singers: When the Voice Grows Up Before the Kid Does

There has always been something fascinating about a child who opens their mouth and suddenly sounds like they’ve already lived 40 years.

Most kids are worried about homework, bicycles, baseball, and whether Mom is going to find out what they broke.

Then there’s the kid standing under a spotlight singing about heartbreak.

That’s where things get interesting.

Country Music Has a History of Starting Young

Country music has produced some remarkable young singers.

Brenda Lee became a star while still a child. Tanya Tucker was only 13 when she recorded “Delta Dawn.” Decades later, LeAnn Rimes became a major country star at 13 and 14. Billy Gilman was only 12 when “One Voice” became a country hit.

Talent apparently doesn’t check your driver’s license.

If the voice is there, it’s there.

But having the voice and being ready for the music business are two completely different things.

A Twelve-Year-Old Can Sing. Can a Twelve-Year-Old Handle Fame?

That may be the more important question.

Imagine being 12 years old and having adults discussing your record sales, your appearance, your next single, your television appearances and whether you are still commercially marketable.

At 12, I was probably trying to figure out where I left my shoes.

Now somebody wants to know about quarterly record sales.

There is something slightly crazy about that.

A talented child can learn pitch, phrasing, timing and stage presence. Some are naturally extraordinary performers.

But childhood is also when people are figuring out who they are.

Fame can interfere with that process.

Suddenly applause becomes normal.

Then what happens when the applause stops?

Then the Voice Changes

For boys especially, there is another problem nobody can negotiate with:

Biology.

A young male singer can build an audience around a particular sound, and puberty can come along and rewrite the instrument.

Billy Gilman is an interesting example. He became the youngest artist at the time to place a hit on Billboard’s country chart, but even during his early success people in the industry were openly wondering what would happen when his voice changed.

You can change producers.

You can change record labels.

You can change keys.

You cannot fire puberty.

“Sorry, puberty, this just isn’t working out. Security will escort you from the building.”

Puberty doesn’t care.

The Dangerous Part Is Turning a Child Into a Product

There is nothing wrong with a child singing.

Kids should sing.

They should play guitar, piano, drums, fiddle, write terrible songs, write great songs, perform at school, sing at church, play county fairs and drive their parents insane practicing the same song 600 times.

That’s how musicians are made.

The trouble begins when adults stop seeing a developing young musician and start seeing a product.

Because products have expiration dates.

Human beings shouldn’t.

The music business has periodically chased very young performers because younger audiences can represent a valuable market. Nashville had noticeable waves of teenage signings in the 1990s and again around 2010.

But finding the next teenage superstar isn’t the same thing as developing an artist who can still make music at 30, 50 or 70.

Let Them Become Artists

A child with extraordinary talent should absolutely be encouraged.

But maybe the goal shouldn’t always be:

How fast can we make this kid famous?

Maybe it should be:

How do we help this kid love music for the next 70 years?

Teach them the instrument.

Teach them songwriting.

Teach them what a publishing agreement means.

Teach them that 10,000 people cheering doesn’t make them better than anybody else.

And teach them that if those 10,000 people disappear tomorrow, they are still a musician.

That last lesson might be worth more than the record contract.

Music Isn’t Going Anywhere

There is no expiration date on becoming an artist.

You don’t have to conquer Nashville before you’re old enough to drive.

If you’re 12 and love singing, sing.

If you’re 22, sing.

If you’re 72, sing.

The important thing isn’t how young you were when somebody discovered you.

It’s whether you’re still making music after everybody else stops looking.

A child singer can have an extraordinary voice.

But an artist needs something that takes considerably longer to develop:

a life to sing about.