Cleats and chords: UAB’s Lola Sommer chasing soccer and music dreams
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. —
Good communication in soccer requires the player to be clear, concise and loud enough to cut through the noise of the game.
UAB’s Lola Sommer has spent years perfecting that skill, playing the game since she was a kid.
“My older brother played, and I just wanted to do anything he did, so I started playing soccer when I was little. It’s been like that my whole life,” Sommer said.
>> A MOMENT OF JOY: News We Love
For years, that’s been the only way to hear her voice. That was until her voice started coming through the JBL speaker the team brings to practice.
“It’s been kind of a dream come true. It’s funny, like my team does call me Hannah Montana,” Sommer said.
It is the best of both worlds for the UAB senior. While she suits up for the Blazers on the field, she’s making music off of it. Sommer has released two songs, “Mess It Up” and “Glad Ur Gone.” She’s pursuing a career in something she’s loved doing since she was a kid.
“I think I did soccer because my brother did it, and I started singing because I was obsessed with Taylor Swift, and I was like five,” Sommer said.
It was always just a hobby for Sommer, but a marketing internship last summer changed her mind. She found during the internship that it wasn’t her passion and that while she had time, she needed to try and pursue the one thing that was.
>> COMING TOGETHER: Project CommUNITY
“If I don’t do it now, then when would I do it? Honestly, I just didn’t want to look back in 10 or 20 years and be like, dang, I wish I would have started when I could,” Sommer said.
So during spring break, she took a trip to Los Angeles and had her first studio session.
“This is the first time I feel like this is exactly what I’m supposed to be doing with my life,” Sommer said.
It’s been full steam ahead ever since as she’s released two songs with another on the way. She’s also shared her passion online with countless videos shared of her singing and writing songs.
“It’s kind of an alter ego for me. I feel like when I’m writing and singing, I’m the most confident and authentic version of myself,” Sommer said.
It’s become an outlet for her beyond soccer.
“When you’re an athlete, it’s easy to kind of put your entire worth or your identity or even just your mood for the day on your sport. I think that for me, having another passion, I’m able to step off the field and kind of leave what’s happened on the field,” Sommer said.
She’s feeling the support from her teammates as they know all the words to the songs, even doing them as karaoke on the team bus.
“This is honestly the sweetest, most wonderful group of people. Like everybody on this team is so kind and so supportive of it,” Sommer said.
It’s her hope that others connect to the music too.
“I want other people who listen to my music to feel confident when they listen to it. I want people to feel like they can relate, like they’re not alone, whatever they might be going through,” Sommer said.
“I want people to look at me and be like, oh, you don’t have to come from L.A. or New York, or you don’t have to be a nepo baby just to get into it and do what you actually love and do what you want to do,” Sommer said.
>> WVTM 13 ON-THE-GO: Download our app for free