Lucas Stevens is a member of the Redmond High Class of 2024. Stevens overcame a bullied youth to earn his diploma, chart a course to college and continuing to make music.

When Lucas Stevens graduated from Redmond High on June 7, it wasn’t his first time receiving laurels on stage.

Stevens has already been front and center, singing his heart out in auditions for national television shows like “The Voice” and “America’s Got Talent.” And although he didn’t get as far as he wanted to in either competition, Stevens said he used his victories and failures as motivation, both in the classroom and in his musical career.

Growing up hasn’t been all singing and dancing, however. Stevens said he has faced severe bullying since he was young, and was devastated by the death of two people close to him. Yet the 18-year-old persevered and was able to earn his diploma as a member of the Class of 2024.

Stevens was born in Fontana, Calif., and his family moved to Idaho when he was six years old. The Stevens family lived there for seven years before packing up again and settling in Redmond. At each stop, Lucas was active in musical theater.

But not everyone was feeling the rhythm. Stevens said he has been bullied throughout his life, starting in elementary school and following him into high school. Dealing with bullies is something he said has helped him become a beacon for other students dealing with the same thing.

“I remember the very first time I got made fun of in fourth grade,” said Stevens. “And since then it kind of never really stopped. I feel like having those problems has shaped me into a person where whenever I’m doing my best, it makes me want to be the person that helps other people who might be in a rough spot.”

Trying for television stardom

During his freshman year, Stevens auditioned for “The Voice” and “America’s Got Talent.” He advanced to the final round of auditions for the former and received a call back for another round on the latter.

But Stevens was not selected in the final rounds of auditions for either show, falling just short of making his national television debut. However, his original song submitted for “The Voice” finished 26th out of 200,000 submissions.

“It sucked at the moment,” said Stevens. “But since then, I’ve actually been really grateful because it’s motivated me to do my own thing.”

During his “America’s Got Talent” audition he was able to meet his idol, the singer and actress Ariana Grande. He said that alone made the experience worthwhile.

His passion for making music began in second grade, when he was cast as The Tin Man in a production of The Wizard of Oz. Over time, Stevens realized he had become more passionate about singing than acting, so he started concentrating on music.

Since then, he has started to write and record his own songs. He released two original compositions earlier this year that have accumulated more than 100,000 plays on a number of online streaming sites.

Difficult circumstances

While Stevens was gunning for a spot on some of the country’s most popular television shows, he faced tragedy in his personal life.

During his sophomore year, a former partner died in a car accident. And in 2023, his friend and fellow musician, Isrrael Escobar, drowned at Steelhead Falls. Losing two close friends impacted his mental health, causing him to drift. He said he pulled away from friends and lost his focus on school work.

“It took the point (of trying) out of things for me,” he said.

Years later, he tries to find a silver lining.

“There’s other people that are affected by that and it gives me that chance to say, ‘I’ve been through this same thing’ and use that to help other people through those sorts of things,” he said.

Stevens was attending online school at the time of both tragedies. His grades and attendance suffered and he was in fear of not being able to graduate with his class. That’s when he decided to flip the switch. Stevens completed high school through Redmond School District’s GED program — which gave him an extra 12 college credits already in the bag.

Wes Lipskey, college and career counselor at Redmond High, said he was impressed by the way Stevens got back on track.

“(We) were trying to navigate a path toward graduation,” recalled Lipskey. “He did exceptionally well — like knock it out of the ballpark well — on one of the tests that he needed to pass in order to graduate. The realization on his face when he saw how well he really did … that’s my fondest memory.”

Lipskey said he felt like Stevens manifested his own success.

“At times, I’m sure he wasn’t really sure how he was going to do it and he probably felt really uncertain,” said Lipskey. “But he never stopped. He always showed up. He always talked, and we were able to get to where we are right now because he did that.”

Stevens walked the stage at graduation with his 2024 class. He will head off in the fall to Linn-Benton Community College in Albany. He plans to study business and marketing and earn an associate’s degree before transferring to Louisiana State University to finish his bachelor’s degree. He said he will be sure to find time to sing and write more songs.

“Being a positive and kind person is really important,” said Stevens. “No matter how rude people are to me. I’ve always tried to either ignore it or have that thought in the back of my head … that maybe they’re going through something, too.”