—ALEXIS SCATENA—
By day, senior Alexis Scatena is a relatively normal student — she sings in the Aragon choir, takes a couple AP classes, and studies hard in hopes of getting into college.
Occasionally, Scatena will post a video on her YouTube channel, “Lexi Scatena,” or on her SoundCloud account. What may not seem immediately apparent, however, is that Scatena has been speaking to a music producer for the past two years, recording original music at her home and pursuing a possible career in the music industry.
“Singing has always been my thing. My mom says that the way I learned to talk,” recalls Scatena, “was through singing songs on Barney— I was seven when Hannah Montana came out, and I knew I wanted to do that.”
When Scatena uploaded a video to YouTube in 2011, she was initially mocked, so she decided to take a break from music, up until just a couple of years ago, when she quit cheerleading and began to focus on making music.
Soon, her videos started getting attention on YouTube.
“I got a message on YouTube,” Scatena says, “from a representative of [a music producer named Shannon McArthur] in Los Angeles. And the representative was like ‘hey, I’d like to get you in contact with [McArthur]”
The music producer turned out to be a musician himself, and he offered Scatena to come to Los Angeles for a few days and record some music for $8000.
“I told my parents about it, and we were really skeptical at first. [The producer] offered the alternative of having Skype lessons, which was about the same price as voice lessons,” says Scatena. “We bought equipment, and I paid for part of it too, because I really wanted to do it. My mom [and] my dad are my biggest supporters.”
Scatena feels that the support and feedback she has received from doing music has been crucial in continuing her venture into the music industry.
“Something good always comes out of [music],” Scatena says. “I think that’s a sign that music is what I’m supposed to be doing. I just need to stick with it, and hopefully, I’ll get someplace.”
find Alexis Scatena’s work at soundcloud.com/lexiscatena
—KATIE KILCULLEN—
Aragon alumna Katie Kilcullen, now a sophomore at Marist college, finds herself flourishing as a psych major and music minor.
Music has always been a central part in her life, and Katie has found much joy in the process. Like Scatena, Kilcullen has drawn a lot of inspiration for her career from the early shows of Hannah Montana.
Though Kilcullen has been singing at talent shows since she was eight and playing piano since five, her experience with recording music didn’t begin until the summer before senior year in high school.
It began with a demo she recorded around eighth grade. A friend of her father’s— a music producer— happened to like it, and met with Kilcullen at around the first semester of senior year.
“The feeling of going into recording was really stressful at first,” Kilcullen remembers. “I think my first session was in August, and we finished up before December. So, the first few sessions, we went in and did demos. We spent a whole day doing five songs with drums, and the next with an electric guitar. It was really cool.”
Balancing all this recording during her senior year wasn’t easy. Between school, homework, and a job, Kilcullen often found herself in the recording studio past midnight. However, Kilcullen often felt a sense of happiness and release in the studio.
“That time was honestly like the best time,” Kilcullen recalls. “I had so much fun there and I loved it. Seeing the whole recording process was really cool.”
Kilcullen’s experience with recording eventually grew into paid performances at local venues. She even decided to sell her music on iTunes and Amazon.
“It’s been fun,” says Kilcullen. “Every once in awhile, I’ll get surprised, and a check will come in the mail or something, and I’ll be like ‘oh cool, people are actually buying the music, that’s awesome.’”
As involved as she is with music, Kilcullen still enjoys music as some activity that floats in between a hobby and a professional venture.
“For right now, I think [music] is going to be something I’m doing for fun,” says Kilcullen. “It’s definitely a little more than a hobby. I don’t know what I would call it. I do it because I love it, though. I think music is always going to be a part of my life, whether I do it as a career or if it’s just something I do because I love it.”
Find Katie Kilcullen’s work on her Instagram @katiekilcullenmusic
