Standing on stage, exchanging glances with the crowd, junior Danna Kim begins belting out the song that she’s been rehearsing for hours. Between regulating her breaths, seamlessly transitioning between different notes, and mastering the correct pronunciation for songs in different languages, Kim is a pro when it comes to singing in front of a crowd.
Starting at a young age, Kim was able to discover her musical talent which allowed her to begin improving her voice.
“I started singing when I was in third grade, technically when I was nine because my mom found my talent in opera and musical genres,” Kim said. “I always felt nerve-wracked when I was up there trying to present what I’ve been working on and preparing for. I always tell myself to calm down by knowing that I did everything that I could to prepare for this competition.”
Family is a great source of comfort for Kim, and she turns to them for encouragement when she is lacking confidence.
“My biggest inspiration would be my grandma because she is my best friend and I know her vocals; she would’ve definitely been a great singer,” Kim said. “She always compliments me whenever I’m there to sing, and she listens to me, even if I have bad days with performing. She’s always by my side and I love her so much.”
Before starting a performance, Kim composes herself to ensure the smooth delivery of her song.
“To calm down, I usually try to space out and think about memories of my favorite places and try to listen to others sing first if it’s in the same room,” Kim said. “Their voices are also angelic so I often relish their voices. Or I sometimes look over to my family to know that they’re supporting me from the back.”
During her performances, Kim often can find her family’s familiar faces in the crowd to cheer her on and support her.
“I always think back to how young she was when she started, and [compared to now], how much she has improved, which I’m really proud about, and I’m happy she enjoys singing as much as I love listening to her. ” Kim’s mother, Youn Hee Kim said. “If she is struggling in a section…I always reassure her that she doesn’t have to be perfect.”
In addition to the support they bring to her singing performances, Kim’s family also helps with playing musical instruments to synchronize with her vocals.
“My family always participates in my lessons, recitals, and competitions whenever they can,” Kim said. “Even if they can’t go into the room since they are private competitions, they still stay outside and wait patiently, believing I will do all right, and my mom will play piano for me to practice [at home].”
Being a performer for almost seven years gives Kim the time to reflect on why preforming is significant to her.
“Performing is important to me because it lets me know where I am with self improvement,” Kim said. “It helps me shine light on the genre of opera which is one of my goals.”
One of the ways that Kim distinguishes herself as a performer is through being able to sing in a wide variety of languages, including Korean, French, German, and Italian.
“Singing in multilingual opera has its challenges; sometimes pronunciation becomes a barrier,” Kim said. “Since there’s a specific way you have to connect the notes to the word and the flow of the words in other languages, which of course are different from English.”
“My goal for singing is to do as much as I can until I can’t do it anymore. I’m hoping to further become successful with my practice,” Kim said. “I sing twice or three times a week for one hour. If I sang daily I would just tire myself out instead of improving; I need to take care of my body since my body is an instrument.”
Although Kim herself was able to get a head start at singing from an early age, she still believes that others can start now with hard work and dedication.
“My love for singing will never end, I love classical music and singing opera,” Kim said. Some advice I would give to new singers is to not give up before even trying, even I, a person who I personally think is experienced, gets scared to hit newer high notes my teacher wants me to hit. It’s best to start something at least one day to improve your singing.”
