Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
SYRACUSE — If you're watching the singing competition "The Voice" on KSL this season, there's no doubt 18-year-old Noelle Bybee caught your attention; especially because she's from Utah.
"I'm doing what I love and just singing, making friends and being able to meet celebrities — it's been crazy and it's such a blast,” Bybee said during her visit to KSL studios Friday evening.
One of the mentors she met is singer, songwriter and producer, Pharrell Williams, the coach who picked her for his team on "The Voice."
"He was so down-to-earth. He was really cool and chill,” Bybee said.
But when she's back home in Syracuse, using Pharrell's name doesn't work with Mom and Dad.
"Once I'm home, they make me do my chores and stuff, which is good. My parents keep me very humbled and grounded,” Bybee said with a laugh. “It’s weird when people come up to me and they’re like, ‘You’re famous,’ and I’m like, ‘No.’”
That attitude is also why she's a student body officer at Syracuse High School, enjoying her senior year. However, it didn't start out that way.
"This past summer, we had four of our students pass away in Syracuse. That was really tough on us,” Bybee said.
Bybee said she knew Daulton and Jaxon Whatcott, the two brothers who died in an airplane crash; Marli Hamblin, who died after being accidentally run over while sunbathing in her driveway; and Ariah Bosworth, who died unexpectedly.
I'm doing what I love and just singing, making friends, and being able to meet celebrities — it's been crazy and it's such a blast.
–Noelle Bybee
“As a student body officer, we’re supposed to bring the students together, and it was difficult. We didn’t really know how to go about that in a way when we had classmates who were friends with all of them,” Bybee said.
The phrase "Syracuse Strong" became a rallying cry for students to bond. It's part of the reason why she's sharing her experience on "The Voice" with the whole school, because after so many bad days, it's nice to finally have something good.
“They’ve given me strength to do this and so I want to shine for my town of Syracuse and show that good things can happen and good things will happen,” Bybee said.
"Seeing that life can be taken away from you so easily and so unexpectedly, that really showed us that we need to do what we love and go after it and do it now, because you never know when your time might be cut short."
