Today we’d like to introduce you to Sonia Grace.
Hi Sonia, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
The first taste of music was learning the lullabies my mother taught me and singing in the children’s choir at my church. I enrolled in competitions throughout my youth and started teaching myself how to write songs at fourteen. As my lyricism went from crappy to potential hit material, I realized that writing my own music not only gave me complete creative control but also gave me an avenue to share my story with my fans.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Before COVID, the hardships of a musician were mostly limited to finances, depression, career stagnation and waiting for the proverbial big break. Now, in addition to those ordeals, the majority of musicians like myself are struggling to get back into the groove after almost a year and half of couch-camping and binge-watching Netflix. Furthermore, there is constant worry whether recording studios and live performance venues are following all the necessary COVID safety protocols. However, despite this gloomy picture, the pandemic has proved to be a pivotal turning point for me. I’ve been using some of this time to reevaluate my career goals and strategies, be with my family and find opportunities to create music that reflects what’s going on in the world.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
As a Kenyan musician living in Los Angeles, I use my music to tell the story of an immigrant learning to navigate life in America. I write, sing and rap in English, Kiswahili and my native language, Gikuyu. This allows me to make music that’s pop, hip-pop, R&B and Afro-Fusion, such as my most recent song, “Eva’s Man.” I’m proud of this song because I was able to incorporate different elements and showcase all of my artistic capabilities. And, not only has it received airplay on some indie radio stations, it’s also my fastest streaming song so far. This feat has given me the confidence to release my next song, “Karen” which will be available on all streaming platforms on Friday, October 29th.
What were you like growing up?
I grew up in Thika Town, forty-five minutes away from Nairobi, Kenya. Between the ages of eight and ten, my friends and I never missed a moment of getting into mischief. On weekends or when schools were closed for breaks, we’d disobey our parents and play in old, abandoned buildings. When we were bored of that, we’d either hold boys versus girls bike races around the neighborhood or have “Your Mama” type competitions to see who had the best insults. Perhaps the worst thing we did was travel miles from home to the most dangerous and disgusting swamp, which happened to be next to the town’s landfill. We’d spend the whole day swimming in the swamp and fishing for tadpoles. All these activities earned me the label ‘restless’ from my father because I could never sit still and I was always up to something. To end my mischievous restlessness, my mother decided to steer me to the church’s children’s choir in efforts of finding better use of my time and energy. Though I missed the adventures with my friends, I grew to love singing in the choir, even when rehearsals were long and hard and required learning tricky choreography. Within months, I made new friends, acquired much needed discipline and got opportunities to do solos at weddings. I stayed in the children’s choir all the way until I had to leave for high school.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: https://soniagraceonline.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/soniagracemusic/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/soniagracemusic
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCn9PRCNvLwdVTWxWryP1d7A/videos
- SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/soniagracemusic
- Other: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3TuAV2b1jKUlPj8ZkrA5wC?si=ulSfP_mjQdyR26IXwh9s6w&dl_branch=1
Image Credits:
Sonia Grace(Grace Gathua)
