Pace singer balances her music career with high school

PACE — Samantha LaPorta, a 16-year-old rising music artist, divides her time between Pace, New York City, Los Angeles and Nashville.

In August, she performed at Pensacola’s Vinyl Music Hall for an anti-bullying event. Dec. 3, LaPorta learned her latest single, "It’s A Girl Thing," appeared on seven Spotify playlists. Meanwhile, Radio Disney is playing her song, "Santa’s Back in Business."

Here we catch up with the artist.

What were some highlights for you in 2017?

My number one (was being) invited to walk the red carpet at The Radio Disney Music Awards, a dream come true to walk with the stars I admire and be so embraced and welcomed to the Radio Disney family — nothing better.

"I Know U Know" was released in January and then in June I wanted to try something new and [collaborated] with 2DB, two amazing DJs from the [New York] area and the new version started playing on Radio Disney soon after.

During the summer I flew to LA to work with producer Sven Martin and Maria Christensen. Maria wrote the mega hit "Waiting for Tonight" for [Jennifer Lopez]. We had a blast writing and recorded my new single "It's a Girl Thing," which is based on real events I experienced, so the lyrics are very relatable.

The folks at Vinyl Music Hall were having a big anti-bullying event and asked me to perform and debut "It's a Girl Thing."

The problem was school. We had tried all summer to talk with someone about my schedule and how many days [I’d be] allowed to miss … so after speaking with the school district they recommended virtual school, which is what the kids in LA do who act. After talking with them I felt better, but I do miss my friends.

What is coming up as far as music releases and concerts?

Currently, I'm working on some projects, songs, shows and interviews for "It's a Girl Thing," which has been on seven Spotify playlists, and hope to see new ones [soon].

December, I usually work a lot but already performed at a few parties and decided to take time off and finish school work.

[That’s] not too exciting but [I’m] very excited to return to Ronald McDonald House. I've [sung] with the families there for the holidays since I was 10, except last year. I am so happy to spend time and sing Christmas songs with the families and decorate cookies with the kids.

At 16, how do you handle high school?

It's very hard to balance school, shows and rehearsals, but it's what I want to do. Online school, even though it's harder than regular school, allows me to perform and work anywhere. 

Where do you spend most of your time these days?

It's a busy schedule. When I turned 15, I celebrated after a night recording in the studio with producers Jason Nevins [of] Universal Music Group and my manager Lucas Prata. This year I was in Los Angels and wrote and recorded a new song I hope to share very soon. I do spend some time at home between LA, NYC and Nashville. 

What does being an independent artist mean to you?

Being indie, well, that means you make it, sell it and do it all [with my team.] It's hard but I feel very lucky to have the support of Radio Disney.

Almost every artist you hear on the radio is not indie. They have big companies helping them grow. I would like to work with an indie label that partners with a bigger label. [It] would be amazing to perform and travel the world. 

How can people hear your music?

Visit http://samanthalaporta.com/pics. New shows are posted on Facebook.com/SamanthaLporta, twitter.com/SamanthaLaPorta and Instagram.com/samanthalaportaa. [My]YouTube channel [is] youtube.com/c/samanthalaporta.

Original music and Christmas music is available. "Santa's Back in Business" is on Radio Disney and all music platforms such as Spotify, iTunes, Pandora, iHeart Radio, Google Play and Amazon Music.

This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Pace singer balances her music career with high school