Giselle Gonzales : Rising Star

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A small girl nervously walks out onto the Knicks’ basketball court, at the age of just 10 years old. The tall, burly basketball players look on from the bleachers, and the crowd goes wild. The microphone trembles in her little hands. She turns around, signals her head, and the music begins. It is time for the little girl to sing. She takes a deep breath, and the words slowly began to drift out of her mouth. She loses any nervousness she had, and bravely performs the whole song. The crowd erupts, shocked at the amazing sound the small girl has just produced. This girl was Morris Hills sophomore Giselle Gonzales, and she performed at an NBA New York Knicks basketball game when she was only 10 years old.

Giselle Gonzales developed an interest in singing at the age of 5. She says she fell in love with music because musical lyrics can express thoughts and emotions that cannot be explained through plain words. She discovered her talent in kindergarten, while singing karaoke, Giselle teamed up with her friends and wrote songs. The group gave mini performances for its class and teacher. “Later on,” Giselle said, “I realized that I really enjoyed singing and performing, so I started vocal lessons and was able to enter competitions and perform gigs.” Her biggest musical accomplishment was performing at Madison Square Garden, when she was in 5th grade. She was able to get to that stage through a studio audition in New York City; she was picked as part of the Kidzbop talent competition. “It was an amazing experience to put myself out there, doing what I love most,” Giselle said.

Soon, Gonzales knew that she needed to start accompanying herself in her singing. She took up piano and guitar lessons to help her do this. Giselle also enjoys playing the ukelele because it is similar to the guitar, and “cute.” She was also involved in the Jefferson Middle School choir program. In addition, she participated in the NJ Honor Choir. She received awards for participating in competitions such as MAMTG and the Pafcom talent Search in Jersey City.

Singing isn’t the only trick Giselle has up her sleeve. She harnesses talent for dancing as well. She started dance at the age of 4. “When I was nine years old, I wanted to start competing in dance with my teammates at the Dance Academy of North Jersey,” Gonzales said. She dances in several different styles, including jazz, contemporary, tap, and lyrical. “I enjoyed tapping because it was like making music which I love to do, except with my feet!” she jokingly explained. She and her teammates have placed in top positions at numerous dance competitions.

It is clear to see that Giselle speaks the language of music and art. It has positively affected her life since the beginning, ands she aspires to continue making music in the future. Giselle describes music as an essential part of her life. At Morris Hills, Giselle is a member of the choir and Knights Templar. She said, “Music is a way to take a break from whatever you are doing and just keep playing with a creative and open mind with a love and passion for the art.”