Kay Sibal doesn’t know a life without music. Now based in Los Angeles, Sibal has brought her talents to professional theater, UCLA a cappella, recording studios, and national television.
This September, Sibal appeared on season 26 of The Voice, a television show where singers from across the country compete against one another. They are chosen for teams by “coaches” such as Snoop Dogg, Gwen Stefani, and Michael Buble.
Sibal said her first performance on the Voice felt like a theatrical performance.
“On the one hand, it was really crazy, but on the other hand, it wasn’t so unfamiliar,” Sibal said. “I was working on a minute and thirty seconds of a song for a month, so it was in my bones by the time I performed.”
Sibal said she really enjoyed meeting the other contestants, and although she experienced some culture shock, they were all “super sweet.”
In addition to meeting many new people, Sibal said she received valuable advice during her time on The Voice.
“Time is best spent learning to trust yourself, as opposed to trying to be something you’re not,” Sibal said. “Gwen [Stefani] told me that when I was on The Voice, my professors in college told me that, and [Acting teacher] Kim [Taylor] told me that when I was in high school.”
Sibal graduated from PHS in 2018. She was a part of Acting, A Capella, Dance, The Troubadours, and the musicals.
“Piedmont shaped me because we had such a good arts program when I was there,” Sibal said. “I just always had the privilege of access to music education, and I didn’t even have to choose it or ask for it.”
Dance teacher Amy Moorhead has been directing the PHS Musicals since 2006, and she met Sibal when she cast her in the PHS production of Once On This Island in 2009. Moorhead continued to work with her in the high school musicals when Sibal came to PHS.
“[Sibal] has a very positive spirit and attitude,” Moorhead said. “I remember her sitting down and playing the piano during rehearsals, helping with vocal warm-ups, and taking on a leadership position.”
Moorhead said she is very proud that Sibal has chosen to pursue her dreams.
“She’s working hard for what she’s attaining,” Moorhead said. “These things aren’t just falling in her lap. She’s extremely talented, and that coupled with incredibly hard work is why she’s getting the opportunities. That’s what it takes, and she deserves it.”
Like Moorhead, Sibal’s brother and graduate of PHS class of ‘24, Ken Sibal isn’t surprised about her recent appearance on The Voice, or any success of hers for that matter.
“She’s always been doing great things, and I’m excited to see what she does in the future,” he said.
Sibal said not everyone in her family fully understands her career in the arts.
“I’ve realized that I have to be my own leader, which isn’t impossible,” Sibal said.
Sibal said the hardest part about pursuing musical performance is the “non-linear” nature of the career, and how she has had to invent her own structure for it.
“From my perspective, it seems there are a lot of blueprints of what life could look like if you pursue something other than the arts,” Sibal said.
Sibal said she hopes PHS students are still interested in music, dance, and acting, as the popularity of these programs took a hit after the pandemic.
“It’s such an important extracurricular that everybody should touch at some point in their life because it’s so healthy,” Sibal said. “Everyone needs whimsical moments and time to be silly, and the arts provide that.”
