Ella Star Hoping to Shoot First Music Video in Lisle

[Editor's note: the subject of this article is referred to by her stage name in an effort to maintain her privacy.]

Most 5-year-olds are beginning to learn about different career paths and create their first list of desired jobs. Ella Star told Patch she wanted to deliver cookies, be an artist, a deer, or a singer.

One of these wishes may come true sooner than the others. Ella's been pursuing music for just over two years now. With a little production help from her father, she recently wrote and recorded her first full-length song.

Like any music star, Ella wants to shoot a music video for the song, which she hopes to shoot at . The family is taking advantage of social media and founded a KickStarter account through next month to fund the project.

Ella's parents said she was first inspired by Ariel in "The Little Mermaid," and enjoyed singing along to movies. Her father, Dan, said she started taking voice lessons via tape during drives to the gym several times a week. He explained she practices nearly every day on the ride there, as well as most rides home. Her parents said she has been trying her hand at keyboard and guitar over the past year.

Ella has also watched her father work in his home recording studio on different remixes and sound work. Ella contributed a piece of voice work to a song for DJ ID Drops, and from there decided to take her singing aspirations a step further.

On one car trip, she said, "I don’t want to do voice lessons, I want to write my own song."

What inspired her? Ella's favorite day of the year: her birthday.

Dan recalled that conversation. He said he just started asking her questions on what she wanted to sing about, and she developed a piece of the song over the course of the ride about getting ready to go to the party.

"I told her, 'Remember the lyrics, and then we can record it,'" Dan said. But Ella wanted to record a sample immediately.

Dan said they recorded a 45-second piece, and played it for family and friends to good reception. Then they left the project alone for a few months.

But to honor the song, he said she resurrected the project, and the two finished a completed track called "I Came to Party" in time for her fifth birthday.

Once they re-shared the track with family and friends, the parents posted the song online, creating a website, Facebook, and Twitter accounts. (Ella also hopes to produce physical copies of the song to pass out to her friends.)

But just like her favorite song, "Save the World" by Swedish House Mafia, Ella wants a music video to go with her new track. That was when Dan said he contacted a friend in video production to receive a cost estimate.

He said if the family is successful in raising the funds, they could shoot as early as this summer. Ella would like to film the music video at Trinity Lutheran at Green Trails. She’s already begun to formulate a few concepts for the video, which she explained would revolve around children in disguise sneaking into a club.

Ella also said she’d love to perform onstage at Trinity Lutheran—but her father said she would likely insist on a private sound check.

Is there an interesting Lisle student you'd like us to feature on Patch? Shoot an email to karlie@patch.com.