Zac Cross, a 17 year old from Martensville, is living the life that thousands of people only dream of. The Martensville High School student released his first single ‘Incredible’ on January 27, 2019.
“It’s insane having a song that you can call your own on streaming and music store apps. It feels like my work paid off!” Cross said in an interview. “It’s so weird because I’m not used to having people referred to as fans. I never know what’s around the corner, but I can guarantee that I want to continue with music and film.”
For Cross, his musical journey wasn’t a childhood dream, like many others. Cross went through numerous ups and downs until he found the joy of music and singing. “I started vocal lessons about two and a half years after my great grandma died. She was a very musical person and I didn’t really enjoy music until after I realized how much she loved it. She kind of inspired it after she passed away and then, probably a year later, I got into the industry part of it.”
Working with an agency based out of Toronto, Cross received an email from them stating, ‘if you can sing, would you like to skype this music producer?’ The producer they were referencing to was Roy Hamilton III, who has worked with Michael Jackson, *NYSNC, Brittney Spears, and many more popular artists. Hamilton was planning to relocate to Toronto and was on the hunt for talented rising stars. Cross decided to take the leap and did a mini-audition via Skype, which went well and led to a live audition in Toronto. One thing led to another, and before he knew it, Cross was scheduled to record a song. “In the song, though, there were some notes I couldn’t quite hit, so I came back to Martensville and worked with my vocal coach, Danny, and I practiced over and over until I could record it. Everything was done in October, now here we are,” the young musician said.
Cross met with song writers and numerous other professionals, who, much to his surprise, encouraged him to be creative and wanted his input. Through the collaboration, a song that Cross is proud to put his name on was created. “We all worked together to try to make something great. My favorite lyric is the opening of the song. The lyrics are kind of about liking somebody, and just thinking they’re incredible and wanting to make someone feel good,” Cross explained. Using his own experiences and feelings helped Zac add a level of his own personality to the song.
When asked about the struggles of balancing teen life with a music career, Cross acknowledged that it can be a struggle. “It’s overwhelming, honestly, cause I’m usually so busy with work stuff and school stuff, that I have no time for a social life, which really sucks. School is now a secondary thing, and I used to always put it first.”
To see this kind of success at such a young age, Cross noted that the support from his friends, family and fans have a huge incentive for him. “It’s such great motivation, having people support what I’m doing.”
‘Incredible’ is currently out now on Apple Music, Spotify, ITunes, and 150 other music streaming sites.
