Avett Ray Maness, now 9 years old, is a 100% self-taught piano prodigy from Dayton, Ohio. Avett learned to play the piano completely by ear because he has been blind since birth. This aspiring musician however, has not allowed this to hinder his musical progress. Sara Moore, Avett’s mother states, “From the moment he could pull himself up to reach the piano, he was playing the melody to ‘Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star’.”

Avett, who is blind in his left eye and has limited vision in his right, progressed rapidly from playing “Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star” by ear to “Itsy Bitsy Spider” and other children’s songs. “Once he listens to a song, he can play it,” Moore said.

By Avett’s second birthday, he could play “Happy Birthday”, and, at age 3, he developed a fascination with Adele. In February 2017, after Avett asked his mom to make a video of him speaking to Adele and singing her “Hello” song. His mom posted it online, and it quickly went viral. That video was followed by covers of “Let It Be” by the Beatles, “Total Eclipse of the Heart” by Bonnie Tyler and Meghan Trainor’s “All About That Bass.”

Before he had completed preschool, Avett was receiving requests to perform at local schools and community events.

At only 7 years old, Avett performed “Bohemian Rhapsody” live on American Idol as a special guest. Since Avett’s videos have gone viral, he has done a media tour including the Today Show, CBS News, NBC Nightly News, Fox & Friends, and The Washington Post. He does advocate work for The Chicago Lighthouse, a nonprofit organization serving blind and visually impaired individuals. Most recently, Avett has joined Vision of Children’s Ambassadors and is featured in this year’s VOC’s Vision Hero series.