In an opening round audition for "America’s Got Talent," a 12-year-old girl from Suffern, New York moved the audience (and judges) to their feet. Grace VanderWaal, the perfect embodiment of a balance between quirky and adorable, sung her heart out wearing yellow pants sporting a faux tie and ukulele.
But don’t worry, if your heart hasn’t melted already, there is more. The timid young girl opened her mouth and the sweetest, softest voice came out. Unwavering but awestruck, VanderWaal began to talk about herself and her song. She admitted that most of her classmates didn’t even know she sang and that she had never sung in front of a large crowd before. When asked what her song was about she giggled and said “me”. When asked if she thought she could win she said “Well, miracles happen…”
When watching the video for the first time, no part of you is expecting this 12-year-old girl’s song about herself to be personally relatable in any way. No part of you is expecting a large voice to come out of such a tiny human being. No part of you is expecting to get chills and fall in love all at the same time. This is exactly why everyone is in love with Grace VanderWaal.
VanderWaal’s song is about finding herself and figuring out who it is she wants to be. It is about dealing with the outside pressures of people constantly prodding you and your appearance and preferences, and she comments on how much easier it would be to just say, “I don’t know.” The song takes you on a journey of self-identification. One that starts off unsure, but quickly ascends into clarity and an assurance that is undoubtable.
Falling in love with VanderWaal was made even easier as soon as she sung her first word. Her tone when singing is reminiscent of your favorite coffee shop jams or your favorite YouTuber's acoustic cover. Her voice is fun and fresh and most definitely has no place in the body of a 12-year-old, but that is exactly what makes it great.
Once the song is in full swing, you know that you will never be able to get it out of your head. Any song featuring a ukulele is almost always unforgettable. Dare to pair that with the blonde pixie haircut of a lanky twelve year old girl singing about finding herself in a sea of people and you have the complete package for an instant internet sensation.
I am not trying to stretch a young girl’s appearance on a televised talent show into much more than the heartwarming performance it was meant to be, but the reason everyone is so obsessed is because it was a surprise. Grace VanderWaal is the entire package. She is the perfect storm of spunky and stylish. She is eclectic and adorable and at the age of twelve she wrote a song that identifies with people across all age groups. She made it catchy and memorable and had a great time doing it. Her performance was unexpected and it was just damn fun.
