This week I had the pleasure of interviewing Sydney Stevenson, a first-year arts student at McGill with her own EP and a passion for all things music related.
Stephanie Sim for Her Campus McGill (HC McGill): How long have you been singing for? How did you originally get involved in singing and music in general?
Sydney Stevenson: I have been singing for as long as I can remember. Literally, there are home videos of me doing performances when I was 3 in my house. I originally got officially involved in music through a choir in my town when I was young, and I took singing lessons as well. I carried this through high school doing open mics, playing saxophone in my school jazz band and in a jazz combo and continued with choir as well as other vocal lessons. Throughout this time, I was always writing my own songs and singing and playing my guitar constantly at home. Whenever I got stressed with life or homework I would go grab my guitar and start singing to settle down.
HC McGill: You have your own EP, right? What’s it called and how can people buy it?
Sydney: Yes! My EP is called Sydsajammin. This is a nickname that came from my ‘cool’ grade 6 Gmail and it caught on and became what all my friends and family would call me all the time when referring to music. It can be found on Apple Music, Spotify, and Google Play.
HC McGill: Are you going to be coming out with any more music in the near future?
Sydney: I am always writing music and I definitely hope to put out some more music in my future. It’s a dream of mine to continue with this. Right now, I am just riding the wave with first-year. It has been so busy, so one of my goals this summer is to write more and do some more videos and promotion with this EP.
HC McGill: You’re also part of the Tonal Ecstasy a capella group – is this your first time being in an a capella group? What made you want to get involved?
Sydney: Yes, this is actually my first time doing a cappella and I absolutely love it! At the beginning of the year, McGill seemed so huge to me. My high school was so small, and being in a small group where I would see the same friendly faces once a week drew me in. As well, I knew I was going to miss all of my musical things like choir and band that I did in high school, so I decided to audition. It was really scary auditioning in the first week of school, but so worth it! I also really wanted to surround myself with people with like-minds and similar interests to me.
HC McGill: What’s your favourite part of being in an a capella group?
Sydney: I have 2 favourite parts. The first is the amazing people I get to spend time with. It always brightens my day. The second is being able to sing alongside such talented people who also have the same passion for music that I do is just incredible.
HC McGill: How can other people interested in a capella get involved with Tonal Ecstasy?
Sydney: We have auditions every September and as well in the winter semester. I would encourage anyone who is interested to audition. It is an amazing experience, and also a great way to meet people interested in the same things you are.
HC McGill: Tonal Ecstasy also has a show coming up, right? Is there any information you can give about the details of that?
Sydney: Yes! TX is 20 years old! We have our 20th Anniversary concert this coming Sunday, April 8th at the Rialto. The name of the concert is Evolution, and you can get your tickets from any TX member, or by messaging the Facebook page. It’s going to be a super fun night!
Images provided by the interviewee.