Leading With Song

One hour.

That’s the maximum amount of time junior Wesley George can go without singing.

“Singing has always been a part of my life,” George said. “I’m in a very musical family, with my dad, my mom and my sister. All the time we're just singing in cars and stuff like that. I really liked musicals, and I sang that quite a lot as a child. But the first time I sang in a choir was in middle school, in eighth grade.”

After seeing his father being very involved in choir, choosing choir as an elective in school “just felt right” to George. It was no surprise George decided to pursue choir at Bellaire High School.

“I think the high school choir was such a big push,” George said. “It was very different, because I'd gone from being in the most kiddie choir of kiddie choirs. I think I realized that I was good at it or that I was at a different level during sophomore year, when I first did like a competition on my own. That competition, I think, was the first time I was really like, ‘Maybe I'm pretty good’ because I got first and I beat 50 other dudes.”

Wesley George sings “A Whole New World” from Aladdin at the Choir Cabaret performance during the October of 2024. (Photo: Dhara Agrawal)

In a week, George spends around 12 hours on choir activities such as class, officer meetings, and one on one sessions. This year he expanded his role in the choir, and is currently the Secretary of the entire choir and Section Leader of the Tenors, which is around 15 people.

“I was crying a little bit when I found out,” George said. “It was something I knew I wanted, because I wanted to give back to a group that meant a lot to me. I think it was just a really good opportunity to experience something new. And I'm learning a lot from it. I feel like a lot of the time I didn't feel like I was ready. I don't think I still don't feel like I'm ready, but I think every step of the way I'm learning a little bit more. For all the work it is, I really do enjoy doing it. I like that everything I do impacts someone and helps someone and changes something for someone, and the results are something that people can see or hear.”

Ultimately for George, the people are what matters most.

“It's a really great community, and I really like creating stuff with other people,” George said. “It's such a cool idea to create stuff with a group. Having that moment when you sing it together for the first time is my favorite memory. That’s when you hear what it actually is going to sound like for basically the first time. And you all just look at each other and smile. That's a beautiful moment to me.”