Freshman Scott Waldo checks his upload, impressed with the 50,000 views of him practicing the trumpet, then goes to bed. After waking up, Waldo opens Instagram and is instantly surprised. Not only have the views grown five times the original amount, but the number was rapidly increasing.

Waldo’s Instagram account is dedicated to videos of him playing the trumpet every day until he makes the school’s region band, his 30th upload reaching over 3 million views in a little over one week.

“I was just in shock,” Waldo said. “It’s always been a childhood dream of mine to go viral and to finally achieve that is crazy.”

In the post, Waldo was doing a forward left box, a fundamental exercise for the marching band.

“I was just trying to practice my marching,” Waldo said. “I thought oh, hey, I haven’t done day 30 yet for my region band, I might as well [kill two birds with one stone] and do that for day 30.”

Not only has the video given Waldo copious online attention, but it has also affected his life offline.

“I’m practically famous at the school now,” Waldo said. “I can’t go a single passing period in the halls without someone walking up to me saying they saw my video.”

The original video has received over 3,000 comments, many supportive, but some hateful. When posting, Waldo not only expects them, but has found his own ways to respond.

“You know, they got nothing on me,” Waldo said. “I know Instagram comments can be pretty ruthless, if I expect it I’m not surprised or upset when I see them, I like to put funny responses.”

Waldo had doubts about the future of his account, but the viral video motivated him to continue his uploads and practice.

“I was thinking I wouldn’t continue after the region band,” Waldo said. “But now that I’ve gotten 7,500 followers, if I keep going I might get even more and more.”

Waldo drew inspiration from similar creators playing various instruments.

“I saw this guy playing every day until he graduates on the trombone,” Waldo said. “So I thought I could just do something similar to this on the trumpet.

Waldo has been playing since the 6th grade, he chose the trumpet because he felt it suited him best out of all the instruments.

“I just felt it fit me,” Waldo said. “I’m small and the trumpet’s small, I tend to be loud and the trumpet is very loud.”

The community support is critical for Waldo and a big part of his motivation.

“There’s so many great people in band, and it’s all like a family,” Waldo said. “Preston Eckert commented on pretty much every single video that I’ve done.”

When it comes to friendships, sophomore Preston Eckert has believed in Waldo since the start.

“Honestly, I’m really proud of him,” Eckert said. “I was his first commenter, day one supporter.”

For the future, Waldo plans to stay in band for the remainder of high school and has similar plans for college.

“I’ll keep posting trumpet videos, maybe even after I graduate,” Waldo said. “I’ll continue to stay in band in college.”
Waldo’s journey is far from over, he hopes to continue his uploads every day until he makes region band and holds great appreciation to those who have helped him get to where he is.

“I’m getting lots of good advice, famous trumpet players are commenting on my videos and it’s crazy,” Waldo said. “People say watching my videos is the highlight of their day, which keeps me motivated to keep going no matter what.”

This story was originally published on The Trailblazer on April 12, 2024.