"NO INTERNATIONAL ARTIST AT MY CD LAUNCH" Sunnyboy

Sunny-Boy claims to be in the Namibian music industry for over 15 years and he says to his album launch Uuyelele, which is due after the winter, he is not inviting any international artist. 

Talk to us about the album?

The album is titled Uuyelele. The album took me about a year and six months to complete. It’s an 18 track album and I worked with a variety of local artist. The album is a mixture of house, Hip/Hop, dancehall and of course hikwa. I can say it’s the best product I worked on by far. Its happy vibe type of an album that everybody can listen to, young or old.

How has the reaction to your latest album been?

The album is still being welcomed, it’s in what we call an infant stage, but the reaction from the public so far has been overwhelming. U know that felling feeling when a new baby is born and how people react? That's what my album is doing right now and the wait has been worth it for the people.

How long did this album take to make from start to finish, recording-wise?

The album was done in a week but then we realized, nah!! we might have rushed, so we decided to redo the album and before we knew it, it was a year and a half, so yeah, the work has been put in.

What kind of 'sound', production wise, did you have in the back of your mind, prior to entering the studio?

My producer and I wanted to something simple, we wanted to attract the youth. You know youths are the leaders and buyers of tomorrow so they were our audience. We didn’t want to be complex and confused people so yeah, simple, glassy, and relevancy are what we produced at the end.

What kind of input did the producer have during the process?

Normally, one has to book studio time but for this project, me and the producer, decided to work when we were free, so we did just that, I mean my producer had a lot of influence on how we should run the show and here is the product.

Are you pleased with the final outcome? (sound - production wise)

I'm happy with the end result, Aint nobody can say otherwise. This is one of the best albums I have ever produced. I mean we do it for the nation so the final say is with them but I can say, I have outdone myself on this one.

Did the producer use any (weird) experimental miking and/or recording techniques?

After the first song, I told him to bring whatever he can to make the best project ever, If u listen to Young, Wild and Free, its not the typical sunny boy kind of music, we brought in new ways of doing things and the album turned out to be a boom.

What's your favorite songs and lyrical highlights and why?

You see this is one of the questions we want to avoid as an artist but hey, here goes nothing. My favorite song on the album would be pressure. The title has a deeper meaning to me, I mean I been under pressure from a lot of things but I didn’t give, and the message from the song is to make you never give up regardless of what we go through on a daily basis. The message like I said previously is not to give up. One might think, what you going through is hard but we forget that there are other people who are having it harder situations, we just need to look left and right and keep moving.

Any overall theme of mood that you're trying to capture while writing songs?

When I write songs I look around me, I look to find issues we face as a nation is facing and I dissect that, I try to find ways to solve these issues or create awareness through my music, I would read a lot of newspapers and go online for more research but in general, every song has its mood, be it a happy day, sad or simply a day of wanting to share love.

Does your vision for coming up with music get affected at all by time?

You know for someone who has been in the industry for long like me, I got my fans already, but that does not mean I get comfortable, yes I can have a song or two just to accommodate what's trending but for me, my focus is to do music for the love of it, music that can be relatable, thus the time element doesn’t really affect me, I mean look at Bob Marley, he is gone decades ago, but we still listen to his music, that’s my kind of music…

Did the record company interfere with anything on your "sound" and songs?

The beauty of being the CEO is that you do whatever you want to. Though my management had a say on few of my song, the reality is that ball was in my court, but that doesn’t mean I'm ignorant to outside pieces of advice, Yes, I have consulted few DJs and artist too on these project.

Are there any 'crazy' behind the scenes anecdotes from these sessions that you can share with us?

At times when we would get hungry, I would get some food and film us eating and put up on our WhatsApp statuses. We would get a crazy comment like, “U guys working or just eating”. This had become a routine, we would get tons of food, and work long hours. You know if u don’t eat, you can't produce good beats, and if you cant produced good beats, the streets won't feel you.

How would you describe the sound of your new album to any potential new fan?

Yo bro! Yo sis! This is the sounds of the future. This is young wild and free music, you need to jump on the wagon and have fun with us, for this is going to last for a while. I'm the greatest doing it, I'm gonna be the greatest that will be doing it, so you need to keep up and stay entertained. My music has been around, I have proven to be a true artist, I'm the artist to reckon with and I have years of experience to prove back it up.

Who are your influences and heroes? (music-wise)

I think, I can say Tupac Shaku, JayC, and Bob Marley are people who have influenced my music, I believe in them because they represent the truth and besides that, my mother has been the ultimate influencer, she never judged me, always been there for me and the same goes for my fiancé who has been the rock for me, she has been there for me through thick and thin, other then that, I have to give up to the enemies, as much as they want me to fall, I strive to disappoint them always.

Why should the nation listen to your music or buy your album?

I have been in this game for over 15 years and now running towards, 20 years, it must mean something to the nations. I have been relevant, they should buy my album because the music speaks for itself. I'm sure when someone listens to my album, he or she would be inspired, encouraged or would find it relatable. The album is made for parties, it also good for long trips, its also religious album, anybody can listen to it even at home. This is best album hands down before you know it, it will be a national treasure and its gonna be around for the longest time to come. It is for you, from me, Halleluja!

Who did you collaborate with on the album?

I worked with YoungT, The Dogg, Exit, Tate-Buti, Tequila, and PDK, just to mention a few… I also have a song with Lioness but it not on the album but it is coming as a surprise.

What inspired the title of the album? 

Uuyelele means prove. I did this album to prove that I'm still relevant and that I always will be number 1 and this the and the title come from that.

Where can we get the album? Is it also available online?

The album be available countrywide in two weeks from now, and later it will be available on digital platforms like Itunes, Amazon and downlow music. Might also be on Nam-music but we not sure yet, rumor has it that the platform was sold.

When is the big day, (the official launch for the album and who would be your special quest) any international artist?

For now, we have not yet come up with a specific date but what I can tell you now is that its gonna be after winter. I plan to not invite any international artist because these people would just come, take our money and go home and never give us the recognition we deserve.. Until they start inviting us, I'm not inviting anyone. The companies that invite international artist should stop investing in other people and start investing in us because we do the same thing and even better than the international artist. How do we grow as a country if the country doesn’t invest in its locals? I don’t believe in inviting international artist, I believe in doing it with my local artist, I mean, other countries are doing it just like that, why can't we do it here too? So F^%$+K NO!

What does the release of this album mean to you?

It shows that I can still do it, I means I'm on the right path, I feel blessed, some artist can't afford to do a simple song or even an album and when they do, its B$#%%SH%^%T. People are talking about me and it feels good.

What's next?

Making money, promoting the album, doing more shows, tours and maybe do acting, acting is really what I want to do next.

If there's anything you'd like to add, say, please do

I think I said it, I would like to thank my fans for being there for me. Never lose hope or faith in anything or anyone. I hope my album inspires you. Thank you to the nation for coming to my shows always, and to my family and friends, you know if  I shine, you shine too. Salut