When one thinks of professional musicians, high school students usually do not come to mind. However, senior Ava Derby is proof that young adults can be professional musicians and follow their passions, no matter their age.
In January 2025, at age 17, Ava released an Extended Play (EP) titled “Favorite,” featuring four tracks she wrote under the artist name “Avalaine.”
Ava started to develop her musical skills during the COVID-19 pandemic while she was in seventh grade and the world was stuck in quarantine. She picked up the ukulele as a way to occupy her time, and she learned songs like “All I Want” by Olivia Rodrigo using YouTube videos. Around the same time, she picked up the guitar and the piano.
When she was in eighth grade, she began songwriting. She started by rewriting the lyrics of other songs, which turned into creating her own songs. She also began taking voice lessons as a tenth grader and, during her junior year, decided she wanted to record songs. She’s also a part of the treble chorus and a cappella groups at Hackley and plays guitar for Hackley’s House Band, which performs during Coffeehouses.
Ava usually writes songs whenever she feels like doing so rather than setting a specific time.
“I usually start with piano or guitar and play chords or a progression that I think sounds cool, and then I have an ongoing list in my notes app of song lyric ideas. So I usually pick one and then start there and see where it takes me,” said Ava.
Though the songs on her EP were written solely by her, she’s also practiced writing with peers at several pre-college programs during her summers.
Producing her songs in a studio was a long process. Balancing recording with school and her other extracurriculars, she would go to the studio every Saturday for a few months. In the beginning, she had to build a foundation for each song. Ava would start by recording a piano chord, and put it into a music production program called Logic. Then she’d record the melody and vocals, slowly layering on the other elements of her songs, including other instruments, reverb, and synth.

“I think the most challenging part [of the recording process] is doing the actual recording of the vocals. When you’re in the moment, it’s harder than you would think to know what you sound like and what you’re looking for,” said Ava, adding, “The best part was towards the end when we got to add the cool effects because it was really cool to see the song come together and knowing what it’s going to sound like when it’s done.”
Her recording process lasted for seven months. Once she finished recording and putting the songs together, she sent them out to be mastered and fine-tuned, adding final touches and clarity.
The bulk of the songs on “Favorite” were written within the year before she started recording. When choosing the songs for the album, Ava wanted to make a cohesive sound. “Ruined,” the final song of the EP, was a ballad, which Ava knew would be a good closer.
“I picked four songs that had similar themes and fit them in. The first song in ‘One Track Mind’ which I actually hadn’t even finished when I started recording it, but then it came together as I was recording it and as we were adding effects, and it ended up being my favorite. That’s why it’s the first song on the EP,” said Ava.
When choosing the name to release her music under, Ava went with something that would differentiate her music life from her school life. “It’s kind of fun because no one really knows me as Avalaine, but that is my full name, and I feel like it’s just a good artist name,” said Ava.
Ava is influenced by some of her favorite artists, including Gracie Abrams, Taylor Swift, and Taylor Thomas. These artists have unique writing and lyrical styles that Ava often draws inspiration from.
Ava also did an exercise with her producer, matching the production style of each song of her EP to another song she liked. “One Track Mind” was based on “Orange Show Speedway” by Lizzie McAlpine, “Favorite” was based on “Feels Like” by Gracie Abrams, “What if I Knew” was based on “People Watching” by Conan Gray, and “Ruined” was based on “the grudge” by Olivia Rodrigo.
While she doesn’t know exactly what career she will end up pursuing, Ava wants to do something related to managing artists or being a talent agent. Experiencing the recording process will help Ava understand more about what it’s like to be a successful artist.
“I feel like it’s self-expression, and I feel like it’s kind of fun to learn about the process, especially since I’m doing music business in college,” said Ava. “I feel like I have a unique perspective of being on both sides of it. I have experience in the music side, and then I’m hopefully going to get experience on the business side of things. So I feel like it’s helpful to know my way around how to record music, and the process of writing the music, then recording it and producing it, and adding cool effects, and releasing it.”
While she has no concrete plans to release more music in the future, she’ll see where it takes her in college, as she’ll be constantly surrounded by music. To anyone who wants to release music, Ava suggests keeping an open mind and communicating actively with producers.
“[Music] means to me whatever stage of life I’m at. The music I listen to is based on where my life is at, and I think it’s pretty cool to associate certain music with a certain phase or stage of your life,” said Ava.
“Favorite” is available to listen to everywhere music is streamed.