Today we’d like to introduce you to Michael Gibson.
Every artist has a unique story. Can you briefly walk us through yours?
Music has always been in my blood and it changed my life in so many positive ways, so I knew I had to share and spread its amazing power. After studying to become a music educator at VanderCook College of Music, I landed a job teaching piano at Curie High School on Chicago’s Southwest side in 2005. I somehow became involved in teaching vocals after school with the musical theater program, and after working with such talented and dedicated students, I was inspired to start an after-school ensemble called Musicality in 2008. This group would eventually change my entire life.
For years, the students and I met after school every day working extremely hard to become one of the best singing groups in the city. The group focused on learning pop and musical theater covers, all of which I arranged for them myself. I eventually decided to start posting our music on YouTube and develop online content. I had big ideas that the group would become an inspiration to many around the world. In 2016, that idea alone eventually became a reality when a casting director saw our YouTube videos and asked us to submit for a project. That project ended up being NBC’s “America’s Got Talent.” We ended up making it to the semi-finals, and that journey completely changed our lives. We received a Hollywood Foreign Press Association Grant, Young Entertainers Award Scholarship, and some of the most incredible performance opportunities continued to come our way.
The year after “America’s Got Talent” was very hard for me because I could not balance my time between the group and my classes. I decided to leave my full-time job as a teacher and pursue Musicality as a city-wide organization. Since then, Musicality has continued to flourish, performing for some notable people such as Common, Hamilton’s Christopher Jackson, Gabrielle Union, and even Lin-Manuel Miranda’s mother. We have even been involved in some amazing events for organizations like UNICEF, KultureCity, Chicago Innovation, Chicago United, and Chicago Sinfonietta. We have also been able to collaborate with artists like Sonika Vaid (American Idol Finalist), Ari Afsar (Eliza in Chicago’s “Hamilton”), Miguel Cervantes (Hamilton in Chicago’s “Hamilton”), Spencer Ludwig (trumpet player formerly of the band Capital Cities), and Grammy-nominated Blues artists Billy Branch and Shemekia Copeland. We even filmed for another television series in New York City called “Wonderama.” Focusing all of my attention on this group has been a dream come true, and we are now in the process of becoming a non-profit organization.
Please tell us about your art.
Musicality is a means to share my personal vision of music and what I love about it. It can heal, it can energize, it can invigorate, and it can transform. Music can serve so many purposes, but I think the main thing I want our music to do is to inspire. Our YouTube channel during “AGT” grew from 850 to 25,000 subscribers. In the past year, we have gone from 25,000 to nearly 50,000 subscribers. I think that growth is attributed so much to the diverse members of our group and the inspiring way they perform. They put their hearts and souls into everything they do. When people hear us perform live or see one of our music videos, I want them to see what America is really about: All different people coming together to create beauty. I am so proud of the diversity of our group. One of the main types of comments we get on YouTube is about seeing people from all walks of life join together in song, and that is exactly what our message is. The arrangements I create are also very specific to this group’s voice. I try to play to their strengths and highlight unique and diverse solo work as well as rich harmony and fun instrumentation. One of my favorite things we did this past season was take a hip-hop song by Kanye West and put an almost indie-acoustic spin on it. I like to do things like that, taking a piece of music and doing something unexpected with it. There are times I arrange the song to almost be identical to the original too, but even then, I have to add a few little extra harmonies here and there to make it our own.
What do you think about conditions for artists today? Has life become easier or harder for artists in recent years? What can cities like ours do to encourage and help art and artists thrive?
Conditions can be pretty difficult because the arts is such a competitive category, and being seen and heard takes a lot of work and a lot of smart decision making. Staying relevant after we were on “America’s Got Talent” was a huge challenge. But it always comes down to work ethic. I work so hard along with the members of Musicality to keep the group thriving. It takes countless hours along with some blood, sweat, and tears, but all the work pays off. Technology is also a huge influence. We had our first video cross the million view threshold this season (This is Me from “The Greatest Showman”), and a huge reason the happened was that one of the film’s stars, Keala Settle, shared our video on Twitter. Social Media and technology is truly a necessity nowadays for artists to thrive.
But it can also be very difficult to gain a following on social media because there are so many people trying to do that. We were very lucky that “America’s Got Talent” was a platform for us, but even with that huge platform, it is very hard work to keep our fanbase growing.
Cities like Chicago can encourage artists to thrive by going to their shows, purchasing their work, and donating to their causes. Even just sharing their work on social media can do amazing things!
How or where can people see your work? How can people support your work?
The main place would definitely be our social media accounts. We release full videos on YouTube several times a month as well as an Instagram series we are starting. We will be having several public performances in Chicago this year too, including fundraising events, so you can look for announcements on our various social media outlets about those. You can support our work with donations anytime through our online GoFundMe campaign.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.musicalityvocal.com
- Email: musicality@musicalityvocal.com
- Instagram: MusicalityVocal
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/musicalityvocal
- Twitter: MusicalityVocal
- Other: https://www.youtube.com/c/MusicalityVocal
Getting in touch: VoyageChicago is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
