Music Takes OC Teen's Mind Off His Kidneys To His Heart
LAGUNA NIGUEL (CBSLA.com) — Fourteen-year-old Gavyn Bailey is a rising star who's taking his pain and channeling it into music.
"Got my X-Rays back today, diagnosed with a classic case of heartbreak," Gavyn sang to CBS2 while on the ukulele.
The teen has struggled with a trying medical condition since he was a baby.
"I hate countin' to 1-2-3, I'm bad at math but good at chemistry," Gavyn continued to sing.
The Laguna Niguel teen suffered from a genetic disorder in his kidneys that had him in and out of the hospital throughout his childhood.
"They went in and scanned and said it looks like he has polycystic disease and he more than likely won't survive birth," Gavyn's mom Giselle Bailey said.
Even before Gavyn could formulate words music was medicine.
"We were in the hospital for months at a time so how do you entertain a 2-year-old?" Giselle Bailey said.
Gavyn's mother gave the toddler little drums and instruments.
By age three, Gavyn lost function in both kidneys. A kidney transplant or dialysis were his only options.
During the year-long search for a donor Gavyn was in the hospital smiling and entertaining the other children.
"He would go into the kiddie center and do shows for all the sick kids on the floor."
Over the years, Gavyn's health has been like the ups and downs of his melodies.
"I kind of feel sick a lot everyday but I'm used to it," Gavyn said.
"Two years ago I had what's called a brain hemorrhage."
Gavyn attends school when he can but the rest of the time is homeschooled.
The singer has missed out on a lot of typical childhood memories.
"I missed 3 dances out of 4 dances. I got to go to one. And, 7th grade I pretty much missed the whole year."
Gavyn uses music to get him through the tough times.
"It really just gets me through everything that I go through."
Gavyn has never skipped a beat, consistently fine tuning his passion.
"I've hit many bumps in the road but that doesn't stop me," Gavyn sang.
The teen and his band, made up of cousins and a friend just, wrapped up their first tour.
"I went from singing at little local things to singing at the House of Blues and the Roxy."
Gavyn said his mother acts as his "momager."
""His life's being fulfilled when he's singing when he's on stage. He's just bigger than life," Giselle said of her son.
"It could be much worse than it is now and just to be able to get up every day and do music and not be in the hospital is just a blessing," Gavyn said.
The resilient musician hopes to land a record deal in the near future.
"The stage is where I wanna be all the time," Gavyn said.
Gavyn says he would like to be famous not just for his music, but message.
"Go after what you wanna, don't let anything stop you."
The singer wants to start a charity to help children who can't afford organ transplants and says he wants to use his music to fundraise for the cause.
