When Gabby Barrett was 14, her father insisted she sing for an all-black choir.
She had belted out only half of Michael Jackson’s “Man in the Mirror” before one of the singers stopped her.
“Oh, you can sing, sing?” he asked.
Gabby of Munhall has the Christina Aguilera factor. She evokes a hearty, soulful tone, reminiscent of Whitney Houston but packaged inside an unlikely petite 16-year-old.
So when she joined Homestead’s Lamb of God Christian Ministries for a yearlong stint, she raised eyebrows — she was the only white member in the choir and one of the youngest. The whispers became offers, though, as Gabby began to rack up outside gigs.
In the past year, she has sung the national anthem at a Steelers game, performed on the same stage as Toby Keith and had her song “Young Blood” featured in a Journeys shoes commercial.
On stage, she possesses an uncanny aura of cool and calm.
“I wasn’t born with nerves,” said Gabby. “You have to take yourself out of the equation and think about everyone else — you’re the entertainer.”
A high school junior at Serra Catholic High School, she spends five hours a day in the recording studio.
Gabby grew up singing R&B songs but has since transitioned to country pop, influenced by Carrie Underwood and Miranda Lambert. But don’t compare her to Taylor Swift — Gabby’s voice sounds more mature and full-throated, possessing more stamina and complexity.
When she’s not recording, her father — also her manager — is carting her around to interviews with FM radio stations such as Big 104.7 and Froggy.
“My dad is my rock,” Gabby said. “Every single penny he earns goes into my dream.”
Funding Gabby’s entire career has been financially taxing for the family of 10, though.
One evening while playing Monopoly, Gabby heard a knock on the door. On the other side, a representative from the local electric company was waiting to shut off the family’s power. Without a contract or a record label with fat pockets, it’s studio time or the lights.
But a deal looms on the horizon for Gabby. After making it through every round of auditions for “The Voice,” the program offered her a contract before putting her on TV.
“They wanted seven years at 80 percent,” she said. She’d see only 20 percent profit until she hit age 23.
She declined that offer and a similar one from “American Idol.” She said Darius Rucker personally called her to offer her a deal, as well as Def Jam Records.
Wise beyond her years, Gabby is following her gut. She’s not yet ready to sign a contract that doesn’t suit her.
In the meantime, she’s independently releasing her next album, “16.” If it takes off and she finds the deal she’s looking for, she has no problem dropping out of school. To her, singing has always been a priority.
Tonight, she’s playing at Jergel’s Rhythm Grille in Marshall, but in a few years she thinks she’ll take on Madison Square Garden.
With more than 100,000 views on her most recent music video for “Young Blood” and nearly 35,000 followers on Twitter, she’s demanding attention.
“I’m not ‘in’ yet,” she said. “But I have my pinkie toe in the doorway.”
Courtney Linder: clinder@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1707. Twitter: @CNL_13.
First Published: September 7, 2016, 4:00 a.m.
