Meet Soumya Nair of North Hollywood, California

Today we’d like to introduce you to Soumya Nair.

Soumya, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I am a multilingual singer/songwriter/performer from Mumbai, India.I have been a disciple of Indian classical music for over 14 years. My singing and songwriting styles are deeply rooted in my years of training and exposure to Indian classical and Indian Film music which also reflects in the other styles of music I practice. I am a graduate from Berklee college of Music, Boston, with a specialisation in performance and songwriting. My genre repertoire include Indian classical, semi- classical, film music, Pop, musical theatre, Indie and Fusion music. My language repertoire include Hindi, Marathi, Malayalam, Tamil, Kannada, Telugu, English & French. I am currently based in Los Angeles after graduation, pursuing a career in music working as a vocal coach, collaborating with artists on diverse projects and releasing independent music. Everyone in my family loves music and dance and growing up in such a environment where music was always there, it kindled a passion for music in me. I started training in music when I was 4 years old. My parents and my Gurus have always been my biggest cheerleaders who right since the beginning supported my dreams and pushed me to become the best version of myself. With a lot of encouragement, came a lot of discipline. My parents and Gurus made sure that I dedicated my time to practicing music daily without exceptions even today. My dad used to always say, “your level of practice should be such that if someone wakes you up in the middle of night and asks you to sing, you should be able to sing without missing a pitch” That one lesson from my dad stuck with me and that habit of devotion, dedication to your craft is what has moulded the artist I am today and I am eternally grateful for that. My years of training in Indian classical music, my parents, Gurus and my idols like Whitney Houston, Asha Bhosle, Lata Mangeshkar, Shreya Ghoshal and Sunidhi Chauhan have been instrumental in keeping my grounded, giving me the courage to dream big and strive to become a better artist every single day.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
A lot of artists choose to not take music as a career because of the uncertainty in this field. One of the major obstacle is ‘Breaking through the noise’ With massive amount of content online, its very difficult for genuinely talented musicians to get noticed. I am a content creator myself and its a daily struggle to make a choice- whether to go with a trend or actually put out some real music for people to listen to. Nowadays the attention span of people is also reducing drastically which makes it a challenge for artists to create content that will keep their audience engaged with their work. I honestly feel, social media content creation is taking people away from the joy of actually creating music. With technology today anyone can become a singer- which I feel is unfair and making fun of artists who spend their entire life working hard at their craft, practicing, learning and growing each day to make themselves better. In the words of a great musician who I admire dearly, Singer Hariharan said, ” do not confuse content creation with practicing music” You might only put out a min of the song for your audience to hear on your social media but when you practice, practice a song as a whole to prep yourself for the longer run” Another obstacle I think of is- Financial instability. Not all of us have some kind of influence to help us get opportunities. Like I said in the beginning, the arts field is full of uncertainty. Our luck plays a primary role in our success in this field. Unless we are into a full time job we don’t have a set routine, we make our own routines, and its different everyday. Our minds are in constant fight everyday with self doubt, insecurities, lack of motivation, patience, frustration of uncertainty and whether to work towards a goal that you are not even sure of whether you will accomplish. Being an artist in my opinion is the toughest profession to be in. We dont know when will our careers take off, all we could do is keep working daily and give our best every day, leading a life with that level of patience and uncertainty requires a stronger will and courage.
The one mantra that keeps me going and keeps my love for music intact is- You have to do music as if there is no end goal, you have to completely surrender yourself to it, sit with it, meditate on it and let go

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
My years of training in Indian classical music, diverse styles of music and languages I practice singing in and my vocal range is what I believe sets me apart from others. I strongly believe my formal training in Indian classical music has been fundamental in helping me build a versatile persona around my musicality. It gives my imagination and creativity wings, I love experimenting singing vocal techniques which are not traditional to a particular styles of music which brings out a very unique sound making it a whole new style of music. Dance is another aspect of my artistry which enhances my music. I never formally trained in dance but I believe I have an instinct for it. I enjoy singing and dancing. I am my truest and happiest self when this combination comes together.

Before we let you go, we’ve got to ask if you have any advice for those who are just starting out?
Never stop learning. The moment you stop learning, you stop growing. A great person once said, Music is like an ocean, a lifetime is never enough to understand and master music completely. Until you get to the horizon you dont realise there is a whole new world beyond it that you are yet to explore. Never forget your roots. An artist’s journey is not alone, you have a lot of supporters, well wishers who stand by you at every step of your life, always wanting the best for you, always be grateful to them. Music requires your honestly. Your individuality, your originality is what will set you apart from others.
Always approach your fellow artists and contemporaries with utmost kindness and respect irrespective of how experienced are they in the field. I believe, every person has the ability to teach you something, if not what to do, definitely what not to do, so always look for those learnings from everyone you meet in your life.
Never compromise on your practice. For me as a musician, Riyaaz as we say in Indian classical music has been of utmost importance in my life right since the beginning. In a world driven with instant success, its easy to forget the essence of grinding and working hard. A famous personality once said, if you miss a day of practice, you go back 10 days in your progress. Practice as if rent is due is a beautiful quote I read on social media recently. What makes you a great artist depends on how dedicated are you towards becoming better each day.
Lastly I would advice never stop aiming high. Believe in yourself. This field doesnt have much people who would actually celebrate your work, not a lot of people are going to believe in your purpose and talent and thats when you need to believe in yourself and never settle for less and give up on your dreams. If you settle for less, you will stop challenging yourself, which will not contribute towards your growth.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://linktr.ee/soumyanair23
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/soumyanair23?igshid=ZDdkNTZiNTM=
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100055848002769
• Youtube: https://youtube.com/@soumya_nair

Image Credits
Eileen Pandjaitan, Mysi, The Blissful Tales, Berklee Summer in the City