High school band member stunned as 'Thunderstruck' performance goes viral

You've been 'Thunderstruck': High school senior's band performance goes viral Advertisement Updated: 8:41 AM EST Nov 7, 2026 Editorial Standards ⓘ Felicity Taylor Reporter You've been 'Thunderstruck': High school senior's band performance goes viral Updated: 8:41 AM EST Nov 7, 2026 Editorial Standards ⓘ Felicity Taylor Reporter PITTSBURGH — A high school senior gained viral fame after a video of her playing "Thunderstruck" by AC/DC on mallet percussion in her marching band last year was reposted on social media last week , amassing millions of views. "He sent me the link, and it had, like, already 6 million views, and I was like, aw, jeez," said Layla Clark, a senior at Thomas Jefferson High School in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Advertisement Clark was excited but showed humility while talking about the viral video. She said that mastering "Thunderstruck" was a lengthy process. "It took forever to learn the song," she said. "I'm going to be really honest, I don't even have it perfected yet." The video's popularity has spread far beyond the Pittsburgh area, even reaching a famous football player. High school senior runs Chicago Marathon less than a year after being paralyzed "I just found out getting on the bus today that Taylor Swift's husband (Travis Kelce) reposted my video and was talking about me, so that's exciting," Clark said. "That's the first actual celebrity I've heard talking about my video." Charlie Woods, son of Tiger Woods, commits to Florida State University Clark also shared how her classmates have reacted to her newfound fame. "I've heard people watching my video in the hallways, and they point and go, 'Oh, that's her,'" she said. During the school's football game Friday night, the band also performed songs from "The Wiz," Elvis Presley's "Viva Las Vegas" and "Party in the USA" by Miley Cyrus. Clark credited her band family for her success and personal growth. "I wouldn't be the same without my band. I'd probably still be, like, the super shy, nervous kid," she said. "I couldn't have done any of this without them." Clark dreams of attending college next fall to become an exotic-animal veterinarian and hopes her future school will also have a band. Make WGAL a preferred source on Google Add Preferred Source Share Infinite Scroll Enabled Top Picks High school band member stunned as 'Thunderstruck' performance goes viral Defense attorney for man convicted in Tupac murder trial found dead in Las Vegas Watch: Giant pandas make much-anticipated debut at Zoo Atlanta 19-year-old to become one of Massachusetts' youngest representatives in state history