The best celebrities are the ones that are humble about their talents. And the most humble person I know is Amber Gwaduri. It takes a lot of begging to get her to sing for me, but when she does it’s like she is transformed into Norah Jones. She’s a little too busy with various clubs on campus (including VITA and the Student Accounting Society) for her own good, but I was able to grab an interview with her right before she went to Naya Zamaana practice, the a capella team on campus she’s a part of.
1. Describe the first time you sang in front of an audience.
“I was in elementary school and I had to sing the national anthem. It was so scary. It was on a microphone in front of everyone. I practiced a lot for that. My mom sat me down and made me practice in front of her. I think I closed my eyes because there were just so many people. I was nervous building up for that, but when I started singing I felt ok.”
2. What made you pursue singing?
“It was really fun, so I joined choir. And then I didn’t sing in middle school because I got insecure about my voice. In high school it didn’t cross my mind until junior year. I joined Aristocracy—the highest a capella team—and we got to sing in New York and at the Clippers game.”
3. What’s your favorite moment on stage?
“When you hear your cheers for your set. When you perform at another school, you just don’t feel as secure. But when you hear people cheering for you, just feel so good.”
4. What’s your favorite thing to do to give back to the community?
“I’m a part of this club called VITA. We volunteer to do lower income families’ taxes. We go into the bad parts of downtown and help them sort out like what’s a W2. Most of them don’t really speak English. It feels really good to just help them out and prevent them from getting in trouble for something just because they don’t know how to do it and they don’t have the money to ask someone.”
5. Where do you see yourself 5 years from now?
“Working for a Big 4 accounting firm.”
6. What’s something at UCLA you want to do before you graduate?
“I’ve heard people can go to the rooftop of Royce. I really want to do that!”