The price of building a successful name for oneself is all about patience. During the course of our interview with Svn.The.Singer he revealed part of his life that enabled him to get to where he is currently at today. The fear of failure is not a factor in this guy’s life.
So tell us a little about yourself ?
My name is Joshua Zagabe I’m 19 years old and live in Worcester, Massachusetts. I’ve been doing music since I was 15 making instrumentals for my friends to rap on but became my own artist this year.
How did you decide on the name ‘Svn The Singer’?
I had moved to Malawi, Africa with my sister to live with my grandparents when I was 11 years old. I lived there for a total of 7 years. I felt like those 7 years other there with my experiences and lessons made me who I am today, so I chose the name svn. There was a point in time also when I was rapping for 2 years on my own instrumentals, it didn’t take off like I had hoped, I was going by a different stage name at the time. I told a group of my old producer friends that I wanted to switch to R&B, so I can talk about things that actually relate to, they laughed at me saying that I already spent 2 years trying to be a rapper and that my rapper name is already out there. So I decided to completely abandon that name and switched to svn. the. singer. to let everyone know that I sing now.
How did you begin singing and what keeps you going ?
I grew up in a very music influenced household. My mother sang and played the piano and my father played the bass and guitar. My father made sure that I learned how to play the drums and guitar while My mother always had singing practice sessions with my sister and cousins and I so we could sing at church. I stopped singing when I got to Africa for about 6 years but I started practicing again with my mother’s help when I was about 17 when I came back to the US. The passion I have for music honestly keeps me going and my two friends who are also producers who are always encouraging me to keep going and push harder.
What are you currently recording with ?
I keep my set up basic with an Apple MacBook Pro, FL Studio as my DAW and an Audio Technica AT2020. It’s easier for me so I can record when I travel.
What do you think is the cause for you being the person you are now ?
The cause would probably have to be music. I’ve always been kind of quiet, but music production gave me a confidence boost, in a way, that changed me especially in my mid teenage years to be more out going, taking girls out, partying & etc. So it’s definitely music.
Who have been your biggest musical influences ?
T-Pain! My old iPod I had when I was 9 is full of T-Pain music. His production to his vocals, on levels. After him it must be The Dream, he was the original “cool-dude-with-a-high-voice” guy. Jodeci is definitely there, Jagged Edge, Anthony Hamilton, Drake (R&B) and since 2014 PARTYNEXTDOOR. I pray to work with him one day.
On a personal level, can you give us your opinion on your own music ?
Sort of personal and easy to relate to. Very ambient and melodic.
Can you describe to us why and what made you make the track “Experience/Habits ?
I had made the instrumental for it while I was at church in the audio tech booth but I didn’t plan recording on it. When I got home from church, my new mic had arrived in the mail. I decided to test it out by recording on the instrumental. I had originally freestyled the verse for Habits but thought nothing of it and ate dinner and went to bed. I woke up at 2 AM with the idea to record an entire song so I wrote, recorded, mixed and mastered Experience in about 45 minutes on the same beat but sped up and at a higher pitch and posted it to Soundcloud by 3 AM. A friend of mine loved the song and complained jokingly that it was to short so I added the habits song I did before Experience and added backing vocals to it and it became what it is today.
If you were signed to Major record, who would you want it to be with ?
My top choice is definitely Atlantic Records, I love the roster of artists they have there and I feel like I’d have a place there.
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