Fairhope rising senior 1 of 8 to win songwriting contest, earns scholarship

FAIRHOPE, Ala. ( WKRG ) — Music has always been a huge part of Sydney Gray’s life.

“I’ve been writing since forever,” Gray said. “I remember back in 2nd grade I gave a book full of writing and illustrations to a third-grade teacher and since then, I’ve just been writing, writing, writing and one day transferred over to musical theater.”

Sydney’s love for musical theater prompted her to write a musical called Anavaly, which is about a teen girl struggling to fit in at school and home.

In her musical, Sydney wrote a song called “Little Miss Heard But Not Seen,” which is the song she entered into the contest and sang, winning over the judges.

“Especially in the song, it relates to me and my experiences growing up, and I feel like it’s a good anthem for other introverted neurodivergent kids who want to put themselves out there but consistently face backlash when they do so,” Gray said. “It’s a feel-good song and an anthem for kids like me.”

Sydney was one of eight winners nationwide. She earned a $2,500 scholarship and will head to New York City to watch her song be performed on Broadway.

“I couldn’t imagine anything better,” Gray said. “It’s giving me a headstart. This is what I want to do with my life. I want to keep writing for musical theater and keep chasing this dream and a great kick start to having my song being played on Broadway.”

Broadway artists will perform her song in New York on June 17.

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