Many people, even professional musicians tend to get nervous when they have to sing in front of others. Freshman Robbie Schafer, however, sings his heart out all for himself without fear right in North Platte High’s hallways, for everyone else to hear.

“I was sitting in my classroom one day, and it sounded like an ambulance went by,” science teacher Isabella Berg said. “I remember thinking to myself, ‘There’s no way that’s coming from outside by the street.’”

Students don’t always appreciate Schafer’s vocalizations.  Sometimes they call him names like “The Siren Kid” or worse. “People are always like “Shut up,” or think I’m annoying about it,” Schafer said. “I’ve been told to shut up, be quiet, a lot of different things.”

His friend, freshman Matthew Woodward, said he only sang while at school. “It made him feel special to be able to express himself,” he said. 

Choir instructor Leah Purdy said Robbie has a great sense of pitch. “There is definitely some raw talent there, and with the proper training, he could develop into quite a singer,” she said. “He should be in choir!”

Out of everything he sings, national anthems are his favorite. “I could ask him about an anthem, and he knew so much about them,” Woodward said.

Canada’s national anthem, “O Canada,” is the one Schafer likes to sing the most. “I would listen to stuff, and then I could, like, literally copy it without it even being on. I don’t know how though. It takes a while to get it down right,” he said.

Schafer began singing in middle school, around the same time he moved to North Platte. “I’m actually not from here; I’m from Wray, Colorado,” he said. “I like it better here, because Wray, literally, had, like, nothing.”

Schafer said that singing makes him feel special. “Maybe I can do something that other people can’t,” he said. 

Woodward said his singing i

s different from other kids his age. “Some people get annoyed by it, but maybe if you got to know him, you’d like him more,” he said. “He’s really nice.”

Editor’s note: Robbie Schafer no longer attends North Platte High. He moved last week.