Lakewood's Brightest Star Winner is a Triple Threat

Sammi Bradley, a 13-year-old who is heading into eighth grade at St. Francis Cabrini, is Lakewood's version of Taylor Swift.

No, she doesn't have an enourmous fan following. No, she doesn't have a contract with a major record label. No, she's not famous or close to becoming a rock star.

But that's not stopping her from reaching her full potential as a country-pop artist. She demonstrated her ability in singing, writing and guitar-playing earlier this month when she won the Lakewood's Brightest Star competition at American Lake Park.

"I was really confident (at the competition) because I have a lot more experience," she said. "I felt a lot more comfortable."

It was her second time cometing in the annual contest. This time she came out on top, winning $100.

Bradley began singing as a 9-year-old, when she was in fourth grade. She and a friend would perform at her parent's house. They sang Hannah Montana songs on a karoake machine and her brother, Josh Bradley, was the default manager.

Her entrepreneurial spirit had already started showing. She asked her mom to make fliers and fake concert tickets as her brother would staple them around the house and sell the tickets to her relatives. They even used flashlights on the top bunk bed for a light show.

It was fun. It was cute. And for the elementary-school student, it was the start of what are now dreams of being a recording country-pop artist.

"We just wanted to sing in front of people like a conert since we couldn't have a real concert," Bradley said. "We did it in front of our parents."

Her mother, Anne Sprute, said she was impressed with the concerts.

"When we moved here (to Lakewood), they would have concerts with five to 10 people," Sprute said. "We had a poolhouse venue and lights and even an intermission."

Were thousands of fans screaming like a Swift concert performance? Perhaps not, but Bradley found joy in singing. Her talents, however, would soon manifest in other ways.

For Bradley's 12th birthday, Sprute bought her a Costco guitar, which she taught herself to play. She wrote her first song in about 30 minutes after a friend ditched her to hang out with another group.

The song's message? Don't take a good situation and blow it.

Not long after, Bradley found the right strings to accompany the tune and she has performed it as well as "Everything To Me," a song about a boy she had a crush on that decided to leave her for, well, another girl.

Bradley's songs have a country-pop feel to them, allowing easy listening and freedom of expression about herself and life events. The judges at the Lakewood's Brightest Star competition recognized that her content —unlike other contestants—was authentic.

A month earlier, she had captured the McChord Base Brightest Star competition. She has also played at a Clover Park tailgate party and other venues around the city.

What began as a harmless, silly simulated concert in front of family has turned into a serious but fun way to reach her full potential in music and writing. Her mom recently bought an acoustic guitar and she sings whenever she feels the urge.

Bradley is even learning to play the keyboard and has a vocals coach who provides her tips on vocal exercises and preparing for classic country songs along with contemporary country.

"To me, its about singing to an audience and to show my talent," she said.

Bradley has the look of a popular singer, and she believes her talent is exciting for her creativity. She's planning to enter a contest hosted by Black Bear Yogurt, a business in Lakewood that sells ice cream and coffee.

But her long-term goals are to become a well-known song-writer and singer.

"If I do become a well-known, I want to start a record label in Seattle," she said.