Disney's Chandler Kinney Was 'Just Sobbing' After Recording HitZombiesSongs: 'Convinced That I Could Not Sing'

Mar. 15, 2025

Chandler Kinney in October 2024 in Los Angeles.Photo:JC Olivera/Getty

JC Olivera/Getty

Chandler Kinney’s breakout role was a singing werewolf in the Disney franchiseZombies— but the actress said she struggled with imposter syndrome while filming the musical.

Kinney shared that she’d never had any singing roles before playing werewolf pack leader Willa in the 2020 installment of the supernatural musicalZombiesseries — and was “terrified,” as she toldTaylor LautnerandTaylor “Tay” Lauteron the Nov. 6 episode of their podcastThe Squeeze.

“I was convinced that I could not sing, that I could not hold a tune, that I was, like, tone deaf,” Kinney, 24, said. “I should never open my mouth.”

The cast of the 2020 Disney Channel original movie, “Zombies 2”.Ed Herrera/Disney

Ed Herrera/Disney

Kinney, who iscurrently competingin season 33 ofDancing with the Stars, shared that after she recorded “Flesh & Bone,” her first song, “I remember …  going into the studio bathroom and just sobbing. I locked myself in the stall and just, like, let it all out. I thought it was horrible. I thought I was gonna get fired.”

“That really just speaks to the insecurities in our heads and how they can grow and spin out of control.” she said, adding that conquering her fear of singing was “actually part of the reason why I wanted to do theZombiesmovies.”

Chandler Kinney performs with Brandon Armstrong on" Dancing with the Stars".Eric McCandless/Disney

Eric McCandless/Disney

“The whole singing element was a big mental block for me,” she shared. “I knew that I wanted to run towards that fear and not away from it.

“I got over that mental hurdle, but it was really hard,” Kinney said — adding that it’s “insane to me now” because the video “Flesh & Bone” “has so many views” — specifically, 256 million views — onYouTube.

“It’s insane,” Kinney said. “It’s crazy. The kiddos love the music.”

“Do you feel better about it, or do you still kinda feel like a imposter syndrome with it?” Tay asked.

Chandler Kinney as Willa the werewolf in “Zombies 2”.John Medland/Disney

John Medland/Disney

Still, she added, “Now when I go into the studio … if I can block out the negative voice, I’m like, okay. That was a win. You know? It really is a process, but it’s been three movies now and a whole animated series [and] it’s still something that I feel a little bit in my body when I walk in.”

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source: people.com