A Close Up With Sydney’s Guard

Q.) What is your name/stage name?

A.) “I am Sydney’s Guard (for a stage name) a.k.a. Stephen Lubega Balyejjusa.”

Q.) Where are you from?

A.) “I am from Kampala, Uganda, East Africa.”

Q.) What do you do?

A.) “I am an Artist/Singer/Songwriter/Actor/Model but also get involved in other businesses.”

Q.) How long have you been making music?

A.)”Well, I started with lyrics writing when I was in my high school in 1995-that is about 27 years ago. After that, I started a correspondence collaboration with Theresa Wroe from Oldham, Manchester, England in 1998-that is about 24 years ago. Then started my solo writing after completing my Diploma in Pop Music Performance-Vocals at the Institute of Contemporary Music Performance-London in 2006 which makes it about 16 years.”

Q.) What are you making music for?

A.)”What a question! Surprisingly I didn’t know that it was my call to make music. But at the age of 15 I decided that I would end up as a musician-Signed and sealed! At that time I didn’t even know why I made that vow! But now I know the reason! I have tried to do other things and put the music aside but find myself coming back to it. It has to be a paying call then if I have to concentrate and do it well. That’s why I am up and everywhere promoting this album, ‘Prophet Of Trouble’. It has to bring in an income and I live on it. So, away from the main reason, I am making music as property investment which is intellectual property.”

Q.) What’s driving you?

A.) “Emotions drive me! I can spend sometime without writing a word but once triggered ideas keep flowing endlessly. But still I can write on call. “

Q.) Who’s your biggest inspiration?

A.) “My biggest inspiration was Elton John when he sung that ballad ‘Sacrifice’. I had just joined secondary school and it was in that era of tapes, Smash Hits Magazine, making our song books, etc. So as vibrant teenagers we were getting fascinated by rapping, miming and all that. But myself I could not rap at the speed of Vanilla Ice-I had a slow tongue! The day when I heard ‘Sacrifice’ I just fell in love and found solace in that! I got the lyrics from one girl’s song book and started gibberishing around until I learnt it. It was at that time when I never looked back at anything else. Making that life long vow. But now I keep getting inspired by the Foo Fighters as my favourite band!”

Q.) What genre of music do you create?

A.) “Basically I enjoy creating hard rock and grunge progressions on my acoustic guitar but my lyrics can quite fit any genre. They are the everyday kind of social life type. It is the artists and producers who can change the moods of the compositions.”

Q.) What was it like working with Theresa Wroe?

A.) “That correspondence collaboration with Theresa Wroe during that time of snail mail was kind of exciting but very slow. You would receive a package in the post and go through whatever material exchanged like a hundred times. Anyway at that time we had no idea things would get this better with technology. It was damn hard accessing the internet if you ever found any desktop in a school library. Laptops were rare, no mobile phones, no emails, etc. We just relied on exchanging of tapes for recordings, A4 papers for lyrics through the post office boxes.”

Q.) How about working with Alan Van Kleef at Motion Studios?

A.) “Alan is such a cool creative engineer! I remember we had a Voice Techniques tutor, Mr. Bayo, by that time at the ICMP who used to give us useful contacts. Alan’s was one of them. Working with him, at his Motion Studios in South London, was an eye opening experience to production and working with a sound engineer plus session musicians. It involved co-producing some of the collaborated on songs with Threresa Wroe to make a pop/rock album for one female artist from Doncaster, England. Though that artist I worked with was just as she is, nothing more to add to that.”

Q.) How about that matched collaboration with Luke Melville?

A.)”After I had come back home in Uganda, I happened to meet Jeff Thompson, of the Un Convention hub, at a music conference in Jinja, Uganda. He was one of the presenters and I discovered that he is such a kind man who likes to see musicians succeed. We exchanged contacts and I asked him if he could match me with any hard rock producer I could work with remotely. I had recorded a ten songs rock album demo, at Gatzero Studios, which I handed over to him. He managed to match me with Luke Melville, a producer from Manchester, England. Luke reworked ‘Run’ and ‘No Sense Of Direction’, which are the two of my rock songs on the demo, into the EDM/House style resulting in ‘Run-Extended Final’ and ‘Sense of Direction’. This was very exciting and it’s how I got introduced to EDM. I owe this diversion of direction and success to Jeff.”

Q.) Then how about working with Paul Rogers?

A.) “Ah, Paul is such a brilliant dude! He is one guy who could send me an email with just a one line joke! Always fun to work with and to listen to! He is from Wales in England. We connected on Facebook after having heard the two tracks, ‘Run-Extended Final’ and ‘Sense Of Direction’ that I was promoting online by then. I had licensed them to OneSun-Neon, a Germany EDM label. So we went on to collaborate, writing the title track ‘Prophet Of Trouble’. We were both excited and went on to create the rest of the tracks. I recorded vocals at Hi-City Records Studios with Hills Morgan and Gatzero Studios with Ismail Balimuttajjo.”

Q.) What are some features you have?

A.)”I have featured vocals on some Germany rock band. These are friends of my long time artist/producer friend Ismail Balimuttajjo.”

Q.) What are some features you want to get?

A.)”well, I am not picky about featuring in anyone’s project! As long as someone acts humanely and professionally enough. I like trying out new things. Just like how I have put together this album, ‘Prophet Of Trouble’. I had no plan at all of ever releasing an EDM album. But I am enjoying every bit of work am doing on it now.”

Q.) Who’s one person, dead or alive, that you’d want to work with?

A.)”One person I would love to work with is Mr. Dave Grohl of the Foo Fighters. But I am not saying that I would not love to work with anyone else! He is just my favourite! And it was so exciting watching him play live twice, at Live Aid and the Foo Fighters show in August 2008 at Wembley stadium.”

Q.)Are you signed to a label?

A.)”Not signed to any label, I am just an indie artist.”

Q.) Do you want a record deal, a distribution deal, or none?

A.) “Well, a record deal is the business side of music which is always hard for us artists. I would sign a favourable record deal. It would be one to take me miles ahead in a short period of time that I can’t afford by myself right now. As for distribution that is easy since there is less investment required. No more manufacturing of tapes, cds, etc. plus physical distribution. Simply uploading, streaming, sharing and downloading of mp3 files to infinity. Though marketing and promotion are the hardest for us indie artists which demand for high investment and good connections that we rarely have. Here is when an Artist like me needs a record deal with good terms. Besides that I am interested in getting an agent and manager who are both aggressive, but ethical, in the business Sense.”

Q.) Who are your biggest supporters?

A.)”My biggest supporters so far are friends and friends of my friends. So I am working hard to get supporters from the rest of the world who have never heard of me at all.”

Q.) Where did your name come from?

A.)”My name came from a friend’s daughter named Sydney. This friend supported me so much to go and study in London. After accomplishing my dream, of studying music professionally, I was looking for a name for my would be band. I had thought of what I would pay back to this friend but had none. So I thought of a tribute to her which was to use her daughter’s name as a promise to be a guard or protege to the young one. That is how I came up with Sydney’s Guard.”

Q.) What are you currently working on?

A.)”Currently I am busy promoting the album ‘Prophet Of Trouble’ here and there. Collaborating with graphics designer friend, Kabuli Bonny, to come up with any necessary artwork. Planning stories of animated videos for all the tracks on the album and directing their production along with my long time friend, Hills Morgan, at Hi-City Records Studios. But if any viable and doable project comes in between I have no problem multitasking.”

Q.) What is your latest release?

A.)”My latest release is the 11 tracks EDM/House album, ‘Prophet Of Trouble’ and its title track ‘Prophet Of Trouble’ debuted on Amazing Radio first spin on the 14th December 2022 as well as on Amazing Radio-UK on the 16th December 2022. I have tasted the services of Amazing Radio and feel that their claims are legitimate. They give a platform for promotion and exposure to unsigned emerging artists from all corners of the world. They don’t close anyone out due to their geographical location like how the ‘norm’ is!”

Q.) When is your next release?

A.)”I haven’t yet thought of when my next release would be as I am still pushing ‘Prophet Of Trouble’ plus I have to make animated videos for all the tracks. So I still have more work to do here before thinking of the next release. But like I said if a viable and workable project pops up I am always available for multitasking”

Q.) What else would you like your funs to know about you?

A.)”Yeah, that I love screen acting and model work too! I have this prospect from a contact of my long time artist friend, Janice Brown in Michigan USA, for a role in an animated musical-with fingers crossed! I have also done extra film work in Inkheart film, The Other Man film, Black Gold film promo and in t.v. commercials. This was during the time of my studying at the Institute of Contemporary Music Performance-London. So anything in the lines of acting and model work, I love doing it too! I can’t also forget requesting my funs to support me by listening to four of my tracks on www.calypsoroom.com simultaneously via webcam with other funs. It is a social media website where you will meet other people, who are also listening to my music, start a conversation and socialise with them. Please find all my info links at https://linktr.ee/potsg Thank you so much for this interview!”