Spring rolls around again, and so does the best time of the year: Blue Key Head auditions. The spirit leaders of Andover will let go of their blue paint and iconic skirts as they are passed down to the next generation, but this role must be earned in front of the whole school. Auditions are filled with chants, songs, and improvised skits. Candidates choose the song they perform and sing with the energetic crowd. Here are interviews where applicants discuss their song choices, what the songs mean to them, and how they prepared for their moment on the Paresky Commons stage.
Kaya Hurteau ’27 — “Call Me Maybe” by Carly Rae Jepsen
“In an audition like this, it’s really important that you choose a song that other people will know and will sing along with you too. I was going for a pop star theme, and I felt like this was a really iconic pop song. It was a song that everybody knows the lyrics to, every verse even. I’ve been planning different parts of my audition for years now. For me, I’ve talked a lot to other people who have auditioned. Both people who are Blue Key Heads and people who didn’t get it. I’ve always kind of had some sort of idea of what I wanted to do, but it’s really difficult to prepare. You just gotta go with the flow. You have a plan, but you also have to be willing to change that plan.”
Gabbie Kawooya ’27 — “Cups” by Anna Kendrick
“It was a pretty fun song. I do a cappella, so it felt very fitting to do a song from an a cappella movie. I really like the rhythmic part of it, and I felt like it could be a fun way to get the audience involved. It felt like a song that everyone I talked to knew. When I was in elementary and middle school, everyone would sing it at lunchtime with the cups and everything. It’s a really fun memory for me, and I hoped it would be a shared experience with the audience. The audition process was really fun, and I definitely think people should try [auditioning for Blue Key Head] because it’s such a unique experience.”
Yumi Lai ’27 — “Beauty and a Beat” by Justin Bieber ft. Nicki Minaj
“I did this song because I wanted to have a lot of fun in my audition. I wanted to choose a song that the audience would recognize and sing along to. I wanted them to feel the same high energy vibe that I was going for. I was going through my hype playlist and seeing what kind of songs stood out to me and also felt most like me. And so I knew that I wanted to have this song that was a throwback and everyone would recognize it. I didn’t want to stress a lot on which song to choose and be super pressed about that, so day to day I would go through my playlist and just play songs. When I heard this song I knew this is what I wanted to do. It came to me, and I’m glad that I figured it out in time.”
Enrique Mercado ’27 — “Tití Me Preguntó” by Bad Bunny
“I chose this song because I wanted to use a song that’s hype and motivating, but also I wanted a song that’s true to myself and a song that I love and enjoy. I also wanted to connect back to Latin culture, and I feel like this song was one that I enjoy and can send that message… Personally, memorizing the song was my hardest part because it felt like there were instances where I thought I would screw this up or I’m going to mess a lyric up and it’s going to be so embarrassing, but learning it was actually the most fun part ever. I ended up learning how to be creative and funny and to understand myself. I am a creative person, I just never realized it.”
