I apologize for the slow reporting here on The Global Bass Experience, but your humble publisher has been in the middle of a move, which isn’t quite over yet. So there are a lot of great Global Bass posts to catch up with and I do promise to do so in the near following days.
One interview I have been working on and longly awaiting the completion of is with the young vocalist Sydni Alexander, whom I’ve written about on many occasion here on TGBE by sharing her various collaborations and singles.
Well it finally has happened and brilliantly so, as expected, along with my inclination to write far too much. You’ll look back on The Global Bass Experience one day and remember you learned a lot about the soon to be very famous Sydni Alexander and the many great talented musicians who have worked with her.
(My questions are in bold and Sydni Alexander’s are in regular type).
A good soundtrack for this interview would be some of her recent work!
EGU: Things seem to be moving somewhat quickly for you lately with regards to your singing career. You have been featured as part of a duet with the very talented Kenny McNeil as well as your own singles. With these past releases you have received a lot of positive attention, even a trip to The Grammy’s this year. Many are wanting and wishing to know when can we expect a debut LP from you?
SA: I have so many songs in the bank right now…some finished, some close to finished, and others I’m just getting started on! My team and I are in the process of formulating which songs to release on my first album, as well as deciding when would be the best time to release it. I’m thinking sooner than later. There may even be a new song released for the summer!
EGU: I was very fortunate to come across Matthew Shell’s work with the brilliant vocalist Carolyn Malachi from the D.C. area almost two years ago. Ever since then I’ve had the privilege of experiencing several of his projects with other artists. Everyone he has worked with has been a high quality artist including you. How did you get into working with Matthew Shell and his fellow musicians and engineers of Blue Room Productions?
SA: My grandparents gifted me with a studio session last summer to record a cover song Primadonna by Marina and the Diamonds. Matt did my vocal production that day and he put an incredible team together for me (Devin Spear, Brian Wilson, and Conrad Osipowicz). Not only are they highly skilled musicians, but they are men of great character as well as brothers. I am so blessed to work with them!
EGU: I know I have insinuated that your music is Pop, I hope you don’t take it offensively, but what do you consider your sound to be?
SA: If I’m going to be generic, I would definitely say I’m a pop artist…but really, my sound is so much more complex than that. My songwriting is so eccentric so my sound constantly changes! It ranges from alternative pop, to jazz pop, to straight up EDM…it’s so hard to put my finger on one genre.
EGU: What inspired you to want to be a singer?
SA: I’ve been singing ever since I can remember…back when I was a tot, I remember my mom used to play Third Eye Blind, Dave Matthews, and John Mayer in the car and I would always sing along…there’s just a sense of bliss that comes with performing that I don’t think you can find anywhere else. Growing up, the stage was my second home. There’s nothing like the endorphin rush you get while you’re in front of large numbers of people doing what you love. I truly treasure the gift of song. I know that I am blessed every day I wake up and am able to sing.
EGU: As I mentioned in the introduction, there is a darkness perceived these days with the “Pop” music industry. With the record labels now in flux the industry is in a period of serious change. A few years ago I made a prediction while I was working in a nightclub here in Phoenix. I started to notice that Pop music was purposely beginning to be marketed to the “club scene.” Lyrics in Pop songs started to focus a lot on being at “the club,” in the sense that they talked a lot about being seen in a club and the club culture. Even LMFAO “sang” a song where they listed different shots and the alcohol brands associated with them (even in the music video the logos for the alcohol brands appeared on the screen as they said their name). I predicted that this was where the mainstream will be shifting most of their focus because sales from purchasing albums have dropped, which is very evident even to those who aren’t paying attention when we saw all the big record stores go out of business. So the focus for sales needed to be marketed to clubs and DJ record pools, where DJ’s would pay a monthly subscription fee to download the newest songs. And to cross over most mainstream artists into the club culture their music needed to change and have better dance beats. This is the moment where the once underground DJ’s started winning Grammy’s and were being hired to produce Britney Spears albums.
I’m pretty confident that my prediction has come true for mainstream music. As we now see that Rock music can only exist due to the plethora of music festivals and dedicated “hipster” culture, which arguably in itself is another face of mainstream. (We saw this happen with Punk music when clothing brands started to capitalize on a movement of fashion by piggy backing on a musical movement that was actually intended to be anything but mainstream or trendy).
I promise my last two paragraphs have a point and aren’t a digression, because it brings me to you and your music. With the mainstream music industry in flux as it currently is, with everyone including myself basing decisions off of predictions, where do you see your career going? How do you see yourself fitting into the current music industry? – Where could your music be marketed and where would you prefer it to be marketed?
SA: I’ve noticed lately that the mainstream has been heavily influenced by Indie Pop music, and I think its rather refreshing. I will admit, I do still love the four-on-the-floor beat dominated electro-pop stuff, but a lot of my music as of late comes across as more Indie Pop, and I think it would fit into today’s mainstream nicely! As far as marketing goes…my music is so versatile, I don’t think there’s one particular music group that it would market to…its so new and fresh and blended together with so many different genres that I think it will cater to most!
EGU: Currently you seem very happy working with great musicians and producers. You seem to be having a good time based on your interviews and how the producers have been presenting you. To be perfectly honest, I, along with many others, have seen a lot of young talented singers (especially female) enter into the entertainment industry treated as princesses and with much respect, but their music is normally marketed to teenaged girls and once those teenagers become adults, they move on from the singer and the singer is left without a fan base. This is a common occurrence and is when like clockwork the entertainment industry turns on the singer because in order for them to sell their show, blog or magazine, they find it is better to victimize and vilify the singer. I have seen this time and again and unless the singer markets herself to the always forgiving and always faithful gay scene, she normally leaves the industry in a very sad and dark way. I don’t like this and honestly it is one of the main reasons I despise the mainstream entertainment industry. I don’t want anything like this to happen to you. How do you plan on preventing this for yourself? How are you choosing to approach the entertainment industry? – And has the destruction of others by the hands of the entertainment industry ever concerned you?
SA: Everyday I think about how blessed I am to have such a solid support system behind me, and I have so many trustworthy and levelheaded people to go to for council before I make any decisions. I really believe in going with your gut, and personally, my character and my spirit is WAY more important than my career. I’m gonna approach the industry one decision and one day at a time. Without judging, or naming any names, I’ve seen so many artists do a complete 180 with their image and their values, and that’s something that’s not on my itinerary.
EGU: What other areas of music and the arts would you like to venture into that you haven’t already?
SA: I’d love to learn how to play the electric guitar. Devin Spear has done an AMAZING job on all my songs with his electric skills, and you know what? If I could learn how to shred wicked solos like him I would be so grateful. For years I have wanted to be a drummer as well, so….Brian Wilson? Hook me up with some of your drumming mojo?
EGU: Where would you like to see yourself professionally in five years?
SA: At that point, I would love to be in the middle of a solid performing and songwriting career. I’m working hard and dreaming big. Having my team behind me and doing what I love every day sounds like a dream job. Songwriting for other artists is something I also hope to be doing in my career by then.
EGU: I read that you work a lot with a charity called One Warm Coat. It is a charity that provides families and individuals in need with coats during the cold months. When did you first get involved with One Warm Coat? And what made you decide this was a charity you wanted to work with?
SA: I first got involved with One Warm Coat a few years ago during my stint playing youth sports. It was such an easy way to give back to the community, and I was able to reach a lot of people willing to donate to those in need. I was recently approached by the head of the Tiger Lily foundation, an advocate for early breast cancer detection, to be an ambassador and spokesperson. This is close to my heart because both my grandmother and great-grandmother beat breast cancer. I hope to be involved with them soon!
EGU: I find inspiration from where I come from and have noticed that with other artists in their work. Where were you born and raised? If it does, how much does your hometown influence your music and life decisions?
SA: I was born in Columbia, Maryland, and raised in Northern Virginia. I must tell you I have been very much influenced by other artists in my area. Just the other night I went to the Jammin’ Java and saw some amazing local talent, and every time I go to events like that, I go home inspired with something new to work on. Seeing other people in my hometown with a passion for music really gets my songwriting going.
EGU: You seem to be making the rounds performing at various events as well as opening for other artists. Do you have a manager who helps make this happen? Are signed to an agent yet or ever plan to be?
SA: I’m open to being signed to an agent at some point, as long as I am sure they are the right person to be signed to! At the moment, my wonderful mom and my team help to set up events and opportunities. God has blessed me with an amazing support system!
EGU: Do you write your own music? How involved are other people? And please feel free to name them here.
SA: For the most part I write my own music, but I also co-write with Devin Spear and Brian Wilson at times. It’s crazy how similar our minds are! There’s been times where I’ve had a concept in my head, and I’ll start typing up an email to send to my team, and I’ll get a text from Brian or Devin about the same concept…it’s just wild. We’re all on the same wavelength.
EGU: How do you approach a new song? Whether writing it or first attempting to sing it.
SA: It’s always a different approach. Every time. Sometimes I’ll sit down with an exact idea in my head of what I want a song to sound like, and other times I’ll be in the middle of the grocery store…and an idea will just pop into my head all of the sudden and I’ll quickly type it up on my phone! I usually come up with lyrics and a melody first, and I’ll send it over to my team, and they’ll turn it into a masterpiece with their music. Other times, they’ll send the masterpiece first, and I’ll add my lyrical touch to it.
EGU: You may still be young but it is more than apparent that you are intelligent and seem clear-headed. What advice would you give to someone who wishes to be a singer?
SA: Why thank you! The best advice I could give to another artist is to be yourself, and surround yourself with good, talented people. Do what you love. The industry will try to change you and turn you into the artist they want, which is not always a good thing…but if you stick to it and follow God, amazing things will happen!