April Lockhart

April Lockhart was born on July 4, 1995 in North Plainfield, New Jersey. She is the daughter of Dawn, a homemaker, and Steve “Snack King Cole,” a professional musician. Her grandmother, Frances, is an accomplished and widely published poet. April has a younger brother, Stephen, and a sister, Faith. April Lockhart was born with a condition called uterine band syndrome, which left her with no left hand. Although her parents tried to work with prosthetic doctors and specialists, April always resisted wearing a prosthetic arm. She always felt more comfortable using her God-given arm. As a young child, this brought challenges that most children never face, such as tying her shoes, getting dressed, typing, and playing certain sports. In seventh grade, she began playing guitar and taking piano lessons, which ignited her interest in songwriting. She uses a small prosthetic with a guitar pick in it, which slides onto her arm, allowing her to be able to play guitar. April calls it her “Birdie.” She also refers to her small hand as “Gaga,” after one of her greatest inspirations, Lady Gaga, who fearlessly embraces and promotes being unique. At the age of 12, April wrote her first song, “Different.” When she was 14, April devoted a great deal of time to writing song ideas and practicing her music. Soon after, she began taking trips to write with her father in NY and LA. Her songs were a way to help her express her feelings about being different. April also began to include other related topics for some of her friends, dealing with such things as peer pressure, disabilities, and even teen suicide, in the song “Take my Hand.” In and out of school, April experienced firsthand what it was like to be picked on, though most remarks were subtle. She remembers, “People would always give me funny looks and I could tell that they were talking about my hand.” She then started focusing her lyrical content to express her emotions.