Born to sing

Chloe Lowery has places to go, and that has been the plan all along for this ambitious 12-year-old Largo singer, who already has a recording contract.

By AMY ABBOTT

© St. Petersburg Times, published June 26, 2000

TAMPA -- Performing isn't second nature to Chloe Lowery. It's first.

Just 12, she has entertained for the president, sung at an NCAA Final Four game and appeared on national television shows including Good Morning America, and she has just signed a recording contract with RCA.

Add one more achievement to this Largo girl's list: the recording of a song for Boys and Girls, the new movie starring heartthrob Freddie Prinze Jr.

At a party at Cino Grill in Citrus Park Town Center before the premiere of the movie, she's nowhere to be found. Well, nowhere to be seen at least. She's lost in a sea of girls wishing her well and congratulating her on her success.

Being part of the soundtrack is one of a long line of Chloe's accomplishments since she joined the Tampa song and dance ensemble Entertainment Revue three years ago.

But good fortune didn't come looking for her; she has been pursuing this dream for most of her young life.

"I started singing in my church when I was 3," she says while taking a break from celebrating with her friends before the movie. "I just sang there for a long time. Then when I was 9 I heard about Entertainment Revue. That's where I (really) got started."

Before joining Entertainment Revue, she was classically trained to sing arias for recitals. She took tap, ballet, voice, jazz and piano lessons. Members of her church asked her to sing solos; she credits her gospel roots for her singing style.

Sounds like a lot of work, but it's a breeze for a girl with passion and a great support system. Her friends and family are no strangers to success in the entertainment business, and they're full of support.

"My sister dances with the New York City ballet, and she's only 15," Chloe says. "They've always been prepared because I was always like, "I'm going to be famous someday!' They didn't think it would happen so soon, but they won't hold me back. They're like, "She has the chance right now and she has go for it.' They're all supportive."

Chloe's voice and style are evolving as she grows older, something that is to be expected. Her father, David, was one of the first to hear the changes in a piece she had been practicing for Entertainment Revue. The lyrics were slightly more mature than her usual material, and the song required her voice to be lower and deeper.

"When her dad came to pick her up, we played the tape for him and told him it was Chloe singing," says Cynthia Gries, director of Entertainment Revue. "His eyes just got so big. He couldn't believe it was her singing."

The family backs Chloe no matter what she is singing. "My mother (Lisa) is totally there for me, but she tends to like the classics," Chloe says. "My dad, on the other hand, is all into rock 'n' roll and listens to the Beatles. He's like, "You go, baby!' "

After recruiters heard Chloe at an Entertainment Revue showcase, she was invited to New York City this past winter to record a demo. Within a week, she had four offers for recording contracts.

While she was in New York, she was approached by two representatives from Miramax studios, which produced Boys and Girls. The soundtrack for the movie was already complete, but after they heard Chloe sing, they asked if she was interested in possibly doing a song for the movie.

"The two men went home that night and wrote two songs for Chloe to sing," Gries says. "They came back the next day and recorded the songs."

The song that was originally slated for the date scene in the movie was bumped and replaced by one of Chloe's recordings, Can't Get You Off My Mind.

"I like the song that was put in," Chloe says. "It's a cute little love song, but it's not the style I usually sing."

Chloe says the recording speeds up her voice, making her sound more like Britney Spears. Though she loves Britney, she doesn't want to be a carbon copy.

"My biggest influences have been Mariah Carey and Celine Dion," Chloe says. "I really respect their talents."

Chloe plans to release her first album, which will include several ballads, sometime next year.

"It's just the way you handle yourself," she says. "You have to love it first. If you don't love it, you won't make it. I love it."

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