Background
Zoe Tibbs’ introduction to music first happened at 5 years old, in a very humorous fashion.
“We had an organ and I would just bang on it all day, so my parents got me piano lessons, and then shortly after that put me in theater lessons and singing lessons, all because I banged on pianos,” said Tibbs
At the age of 6, Tibbs started on her journey of theater performance.
“I don’t really count the first one. But it was Peggy the pint-sized pirate. I was the lead girl’s captain. They asked me if I wanted to play the lead and I said, no, it’s too many lines. I regret that. It’s so silly,” said Tibbs.
The most impressive part about that start… she never stopped. After that first show at just six years old, now 19-year-old Tibbs performed at least once a year, occasionally even three to four performances per year.
In eighth grade she made a goal in which she would follow and later expand on. That goal was Broadway.
Zoe Tibbs: The Artist
Zoe gives credit to her father as her inspiration to join the world of music.
“He was a music producer, and he still does produce music, and so he’s taught me all of my foundations,” Zoe explained.
Surprisingly, Zoe’s father hasn’t produced a song with his daughter.
“I want music to be my own path, I don’t want it to be like, she just makes music because her dad makes it for her, I want to have my own separate thing.”
Zoe, however, does have plans to make a song with her father.
Tibbs’ original intention of making music wasn’t to become a musician.
“Originally when I started making music, it was because I saw that a lot of actors were also making music, and so I thought if I make music, then that would promote myself, which would promote me as an actor.”
There was a real turning point in her music career when she was contacted by a freshman at her highschool, who explained that her first song “Ur Luv” was helping him get over a breakup. She made that moment her reason to continue music, to impact her listeners in a positive way.
“Ur Luv” was released in 2023 by Tibbs, who strived for the best lyrics and authenticity.
During its creation, she knew it would be the first song she wanted to release because of the impactful lyrics.
Originally, Tibbs had a different song in mind to be the first release. Ironically, the song in question is her other single “Hyperventilate.”
After releasing the two singles, she entered into the prestigious contest for artists, “America’s Top Next Hitmaker” held in partnership with Rolling Stone. In the future, she is going to enter a different contest which she will announce at a later date.
Zoe Tibbs: The Performer
Tibbs clearly developed a passion for theater performance in her early years. She knew by the age of 13 that she wanted to do this for the rest of her life.
Not only was she performing in plays, but she also participated in competitive theater for the International Thespians Society.
Competitive theater is where middle and high school students perform in their own scenes, singing pieces and designing costumes.
“You could only do three acting pieces and two technical pieces. So, you know what I did? Gave myself no life and did every single option.”
She began to receive roles of leadership including officer and president of her school’s theater program.
In her career, she has placed first in district, first in state, and placed in nationals for her performances. After placing, she ended up having her scene shown at the historic Ford Theatre where Abraham Lincoln was assassinated.
Covid changed the trajectory of Tibbs’ future drastically. During this time, everything was turned into virtual performances so she was forced to switch from live performance to screen acting, and it outright changed her goal from Broadway to film acting.
Additionally, she competed in America’s Got Talent and was able to make her way past three auditions. Unfortunately, her time was cut short because of the Covid-19 pandemic. She would’ve been on national television if not for the circumstances.
Tibbs has participated in multiple short films by the names of “Did I?”, “Downward Spiral” and “Hidden in the Frames” and appeared in a television series by the name “Subclass.”
Her performance in “Did I?” seems to have been her most polished work thus far.
“I went a lot into research with that and watched a lot of documentaries. I found someone who had dissociative identity disorder. And I had a whole conversation with them about how that affects them, how they feel when it’s portrayed in shows now and just like how their day-to-day life was. And I took that and I put that into my acting because a lot of the time it is portrayed as a horrible thing and they turn into monsters, but they don’t.”
Zoe Tibbs: The Future
“I’m about to sign with John Gautier, who is one of Taylor Swift’s producers.”
Just a few weeks ago Tibbs met Gautier for the first time, where they talked about an upcoming release.
“I asked if he wanted to work with me on it. And he said yes. And I would also be ideally joining his label, which includes a marketing team and an entertainment lawyer,” said Tibbs enthusiastically.
Her new song, “What You Do” was released on October 18th and you can now stream it everywhere.
If you’d like to track the career of Zoe Tibbs you can follow @thezoegraceshow on Instagram.