Winning a Grammy, appearing on the cover of Rolling Stone, hosting an episode of Saturday Night Live: And those are just three of Cheyenne Kimball’s goals. Lofty expectations for someone who hasn’t even celebrated her 16th birthday. But for the singer/songwriter from Frisco, Texas, achieving these goals doesn’t seem all that improbable.
- Angela Cesere
- “I could kick her ass back to when she was good.” (Courtesy of Sony)
In fact, with a major-label record deal, a country-wide tour under her belt and her own TV show debuting later this week on MTV, Cheyenne (as she’s known to her fans) has a legitimate shot at reaching these milestones earlier than even she could have imagined.
But is it too much for a 15 year old to handle?
“It becomes overwhelming when I think of the fact that everything’s happening right now,” Cheyenne said with a laugh during a phone interview. “I’ve been working on my music for eight years now, and sometimes people tell me, ‘Oh, you got famous overnight,’ but it really took eight years to be able to get this album out. It didn’t happen overnight.”
A 15-year-old about to release an album is considered a phenom. But perhaps even more impressive is that Cheyenne began writing songs at eight years old, when she picked up a guitar and taught herself to play (left- handed, in fact).
At 12, Cheyenne was declared “America’s Most Talented” kid on a nationally televised NBC program. It was right about then when Sony/Epic became interested and offered her a contract. Since then, she has developed her own style, which she calls “block,” a combination of blues and rock.
Now, using her powerful vocals, Cheyenne is able to turn everyday experiences into hit songs. “‘Hanging On,’ my first single, is about having just a really bad day and making the best of it – just laughing about it,” she explained. While the upcoming album, The Day Has Come (due July 11), is full of her experiences dealing with normal teenage girl issues, she hopes the music itself will be appreciated by all ages.
Fans will be able to get inside Cheyenne’s life by watching her self-titled new series on MTV, which will debut Wednesday at 10:30 p.m. “(Cheyenne’s) just about my life, just being a 15-year-old girl in this music business and the stresses of it, and also trying to establish myself as a credible musician.”
And if Cheyenne’s next 15 years are anything like her first 15, she’ll have no problem attaining the credibility she desires.