The 28-year-old singer appeared at a benefit for the MusiCares Gala last week and told PopTarts that music education is something that she believes strongly in.
'It is absolutely necessary. There is research that shows that kids involved in music do so much better with all school work - math, science, English, as well as with their overall creativity and focus,' she said.
'I've been doing this since I was five years old and music funding needs to be back in schools. It comes from the heart and kids need that.
'I just hope and wish and pray that the government will really see what the arts can do for the children. Growing up in Oklahoma, where football was the main priority and choir and drama were not, I can see the importance of it.
'My only way to perform was to be a cheerleader, as clichéd as that sounds. There needs to be more instruments in schools and emphasis on the arts.'