When Delaware County native Danny Vitale moved into his Penn State dorm, he brought a microphone, guitar, and a notebook with him, writes Katelyn Supancik for The Daily Collegian.

Vitale has always had musical roots.

As a child, he performed for his family. In middle school, he played saxophone. He started writing songs and playing guitar in seventh grade.

The singer/songwriter continued performing through high school.

He took a break in his senior year when he was hospitalized with Crohn’s disease. It was a turning point for him and motivated him further to pursue his music and to take nothing for granted.

This past March, Vitale opened for The Kid LAROI in the Bryce Jordan Center after winning a social media video submission contest.

On Aug. 25, he released a TikTok hit on Penn State University. The song “Penn State” has garnered 250,000 views on TikTok.

Vitale, whose first musical memory was his father teaching him to play drums, hopes his music leaves “a positive effect on people.”

“As long as my family, my friends, and the people around me enjoy it, then that’s all I can ask for,” Vitale said.

Read more about Danny Vitale’s TikTok hit on Penn State, and his approach to life and music in The Daily Collegian