A 16-year-old Central Saanich resident has his eyes set on stardom, and he’s working hard to make his dreams come true.
Tristan Thompson, a student at Stelly’s Secondary School, recently released his debut album Here for You and has recently been featured on YTV and Breakfast Television in Toronto.
But his story really began a handful of years ago when he was only 10-years-old.
“It was right around the time that Michael Jackson passed away,” Thompson recalled.
“I remember being interested in who he was and looking up his music videos on YouTube. Pretty soon after that I had taught myself all of his moves.”
At 11-years-old Thompson started performing and busking in Downtown Victoria.
“I remember that Canada Day, I had so many people crowded around watching my Michael Jackson act that the police had to come in and start moving people off the road because they were blocking traffic,” he laughed.
Soon after, Thompson began performing at weddings and birthday parties, and his father began mentoring him in singing.
“I didn’t like singing much because I was quite shy, but once I started singing people started telling me ‘wow, you actually have a great voice’ so I kept on it,” Thompson explained.
He said he and his father, Sean, spent many late nights in their computer room at home practising.
“We would just sit around and jam and record. The more I sang the more comfortable I became and then I started recording covers,” he said.
Thompson ended up recording a cover of Swedish House Mafia’s Don’t You Worry Child and recorded a video for it with a local production company. The video was then uploaded to YouTube and quickly garnered thousands of views.
The video then caught the attention of songwriter and record label owner, Tylor Johnson, and a record contract between Thompson and Chatter Records was signed after some negotiations.
“It took us about six months to settle the contract but everything has been really great with the label. It really feels like it was all meant to be,” said Thompson.
Thompson’s album, Here for You, was recorded in November in CBC studios in Toronto and was released in April of this year. Since then, he has seen radio play on 100 stations across Canada and even into the U.S.
“I just want my music to reach out to people and make them smile and dance,” said Thompson.
“My dream now is make a mark in the Canadian music scene,” he said.
Thompson is touring with Teen Fest this month, which comes to Victoria on Nov. 1 at Pearkes Recreation Centre.
For more on Thompson’s, visit tristanthompsononline.com or see facebook.com/TristanThompsonMusic.