Staying Different Makes a Difference

La Canada teen reaches out, inspires with her music


Adelle Higley’s quest to make Junior High a kinder place began with Facebook.

An eighth-grader at La Canada Preparatory School, Adelle has been embraced for her abounding charisma and talents. But this hadn't always been the case.

“People were being put down just because they’re different,” she says about her old school. With her classmates as her inspiration, Adelle started posting quotes of encouragement on her Facebook page. “I wanted to help them stay strong."

Her message to them: “Stay different to make a difference.”

Adelle herself is different, too.

She spent the first year of her life in a Vietnam orphanage without a right leg and a full set of fingers. She battled life-threatening illness. Needless to say, her resilience was tested from the start.

After countless surgeries, she now has a prosthetic leg— but don’t think for a moment that it holds her back. Adelle is currently a star volleyball player, having scored the most recent game-winning point; she starred as a “Who” in LCP’s Seussical, Jr. last spring; she is a cheerleader, rides horses, takes Taekwondo, and loves running.

“I can’t wait to run track in high school!” she shares.

Though her many activities keep her busy, Adelle has always made time for her friends- particularly, those old classmates of hers.

And what began as simply reaching out to them is now reaching “pop star” staus.

A composer-friend read the quotes she kept posting on Facebook and suggested they collaborate. The quotes became lyrics; the melody was created; a full recording studio session later, “Love Me for Who I Am” was made. The album cover sums it up best: “Songs for anyone who’s been on the outside looking in.”

This summer, Adelle found herself getting a taste of the rock star life: spending over six hours in a recording studio and 40 hours filming a music video for the song.

“I was so nervous, but I got through it!" She says triumphantly, displaying her cheerleading pep.

While the making of any music video, especially at the age of 13, is an achievement in itself, Adelle has another goal in mind.

“I hope that I can change people's thinking through music," she explains.

"First, the lyrics get stuck in your head, and then the message will sink in eventually... like a book or like math.”
She pauses and laughs. “Maybe that’s not the best example, but you know what I mean!” she adds with a smile.

Her music video is currently available on YouTube, and the song, along with “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Me Now” and “Let’s Celebrate,” is available on iTunes.

Adelle continues to write new lyrics in between studying for her high school entrance exams. Her next project: a Christmas album. While she hopes her music will make its way around the globe, becoming the next Miley Cyrus is not her present aspiration.

“I want to focus on school. I'd like to be a vet one day and write music as a hobby,” she says.

Well, and go on tour.

Adelle will be sharing her story and music with churches and schools in the LA area.

To view her video, check out: www.youtube.com/adellehigley1, and you can find her songs on iTunes with keyword search: Adelle Higley.