When the A’s take on the Giants at AT&T park this upcoming March, three students will definitely be in attendance — they will be singing the National Anthem.

Seniors Camille Frazier and Arelys Desouza and junior Annika Wells will perform at the game in what will be their biggest performance to date.

“It’s really scary, but I’m just grateful for the opportunity,” Desouza said. “It’s a good learning experience because it’s learning to sing for that many people, that big of an audience.”

Music teacher John Mattern has been helping them with their preparation.

“Mr. Mattern told all three of us to come up with harmonies for the song and then he recorded it and sent it in to some program, and then we got picked,” Frazier said.

According to Desouza, the girls were surprised that they were offered to perform in front of the Giants crowd.

“For some reason, at first Annika, Camille and I thought it was a ‘Redwood Giants’ game.” Desouza said. “But Mr. Mattern said it was for a [SF] Giants game and we were so excited.”

To get ready for the performance, the girls have been spending countless hours practicing their harmonies together.

“Annika, Camille and I are beginning to start practicing. We’re singing a lot and getting our harmonies down,” Desouza said.

Desouza, Frazier, and Wells all said singing has been an influential part of their life since a young age.

According to Wells, she transferred from Marin Catholic to Redwood for various reasons but mainly because she fell in love with the Redwood music department.

“It’s about collaborating with other students,”  Wells said. “Everyone wants to be there and it’s just this fantastic energy.”

Wells said that she has always been afraid to perform in front of crowds, and this upcoming Giants game is no different.

“I used to be really afraid of being in front of crowds, and I guess I kind of am a little bit,” Wells said. “But when I’m singing, it’s just an amazing thrill. I guess it’s because it’s right outside my comfort box.”
Wells has a Youtube music channel, called “Sing Me Some Annika” where she showcases original songs, which she has been writing since a young age.

“I always really liked poetry. I started writing poetry in primary school and I always loved music,” Wells said. “But I would get really sick of the organization of classical piano, and so I ended up fiddling around.”

Fraizer used to play the violin, but fell in love with singing.

“I started taking lessons in seventh grade and I used to play violin but I liked singing so much more,” Frazier said.

Unlike Frazier and Wells, Desouza has never taken an official singing lesson, but she said that singing has been her passion since a young age.

“I am a die—hard Disney fan, so when I was little I would sing all the songs that I watched in Disney movies and I started to really like singing,” Desouza said.

All three girls said they hope to continue with their music for the rest of their life. However, Desouza and Frazier both said they are not sure if they want singing to be their career in the future.

“I don’t know if I want it to be my main focus but I’m definitely going to be singing for the rest of my life,” Frazier said.

Although Wells said she hopes to pursue a career in music in the future, she is content with where she is now.

“I just want to write music for me because I love it,” she said.

Currently, the three girls said they are focused on working together to perfect their upcoming performance at the Giants game.

“I’m grateful to be singing with Annika and Camille because they are great singers and it is going to be really fun,” Desouza said.