Welcome back to our artist spotlight. This week we got a chance to speak to the amazing Salliefoyeh who recently performed at our inaugural One Sound Open Mic night. 

 

Hey Salliefoyeh, it's great to have you here! Can you tell us a little bit about yourself

Hey thanks for having me! Umm, I'm a singer and a writer. I have a heart for social justice and worship, I've got a travelbug and I am in love with nature. 

 

Wow, that's really good! Seems like there's many sides to you. How long have you been doing music?

 

I've been doing music for about 6 years now

 

Ok that sounds like you're relatively seasoned in this. How did you get started? What inspired you to begin?

I started at a school talent show on the nudge of a friend when I was in sixth form. I also won a spoken word poetry competition in sixth form, which gave me great opportunities and birthed in me a love for performing and sharing my gifts.  I gained confidence through performing at various events in uni and meeting loads of other musicians.  

 

Ah that sounds like a dream! Your talent was awakened by your friends encouragement. I hadn't realised you also did spoken word although being a songwriter, I should have figured lol. You must have had some influences which led to you starting. Who would you say is your favourite Christian/gospel artist?

At the moment, Bethel Music, and in particular, Steffany Gretzinger and Amanda Cook. They are the strongest lyricists and have the purest hearts I've ever encountered I think. Their anointing is serious.

 

Wow, I'm not familiar with Bethel music, I'll definitely have to go and check them out and taste and see for myself! Still on the subject of influences, what is your favourite album and why?

This is a wild question. Is it favourite album by Bethel? If so, The Undoing and Brave New World. If just my favourite album in general... I can't answer that lol! 

 

lol that's cool. So we know you do poetry & songwriting, how many songs have you written so far?

A lot! I haven't counted lol. In terms of songs that are out or have been recorded, I have six so far.

 

Singer, songwriter & recording artist! Do you play any instruments? If so which instruments do you play? 

Yes, I play guitar and piano. I wish I could play either double bass, bass or cello though. 

 

I'd love to hear you on the guitar soon, I think it's the greatest instrument of them all (not that I'm biased or anything lol). Double bass, bass and cello are pretty heavy too! If there was 1 artist you could work with, who would it be and why?

The first person who came to mind was Sufjan Stevens. He's a multi-instrumental genius. Does things musically that I haven't heard anyone else do ever. 

 

Ah I checked out his stuff and he does seem to be really talented and quirky. Can you tell us 1 quirky thing about yourself?

Umm, I get super competitive when playing games! Like, ugly competitive lol. 

 

Erm isn't that just normal? lol. Ok here's a good one for you; if you could go back in time, what year/era would you travel to and why?

Oooh. Good question. It would have to be the 1950s/1960s. All the horrors of that time aside, I'd give anything to sit in a smoky jazz bar and hear Miles Davis or John Coltrane play. That's musically though. In general, back to the time when Jesus was walking the earth. Stirs my heart to even think of it. And I'd like to still have my 2017 mind so that I could fully appreciate it! 

 

Good shout, I can co-sign on both of those! If you were stranded on a desert island and could only take 3 items with you, what would you take and why? 
 

I've got the cop out answer. A 5ltr bottle of water, my phone and a boat. 

 

That was a cop out but we'll allow you this time :) Who would you say is your biggest influence?
 

Musical? Lauryn Hill, Corinne Bailey Rae. 

 

Nice, those ladies are amazingly talented! Lauryn Hill especially is one of the most underrated singers around in my humble opinion! Apart from music, what would you say is your biggest passion?

 

This shouldn't be a hard question, but it feels like one. Writing, or the written word. The faith. Serving. 

 

That's noble, a servant's heart is something which God wants from us all especially when we're working for him! Moving on to the future now, what does 2017 hold for you?

 

Some beautiful things I hope. More gigs for sure, a new release by God's grace. And new songs to reflect where I'm at and where we're all at. 

 

Wow we cannot wait for the new release! Maybe we'll get a chance to talk about it again around that time! Do you have any upcoming gigs/dates to share?
 

Yes, Thursday 30th March, I will be at The Cockpit in Marylebone. A few more unconfirmed dates too so follow my twitter or IG page for updates: @sfoyeh

 

 Is there anything else you'd like to share?
 

No. I had a lot of fun doing this though, thank you for the great questions and the opportunity 🙂 

 

Thank you for your time and agreeing to join us. You can check out Salliefoyeh's social media here: Salliefoyeh - FB: Salliefoyeh Twitter: salliefoyeh. IG: Salliefoyeh, and you can also support her by purchasing her debut EP on iTunes here: Beautiful - EP by Salliefoyeh on Apple Music - iTunes