Hey Guys, I had the opportunity of doing an interview with an upcoming music artist and producer, Samii and Srs are two best friends who are looking to become the music sensation of the netherland , and they are already talking to eventually becoming an international sensation, you should probably take notes of their names.

It all started from posting a video on YouTube, now their cover of iyaz replay now has 1.7 million views in just over a month.

Hope you enjoy the interview!

Hey Guys, How are you doing?

First of all we’d like to thank you for this interview! We’re actually feeling really good. Srs just finished his final exams and Samii is going into his last year of school. Yep, we’re still in high school

Can you give us some background information about yourselves? Let s get to know you guys? What you guys do?

Well, where do we start. Let’s begin to say that we know each other since the age of four. We lived in the same street. Apart from being best friends, we also share the same love for music. While Sami was busy with singing and writing, Srs got involved with making beats. We started of making dutch music.

We did that because we wanted to approach people in the Netherlands, because that’s where we live. After we’ve done several things, such as performances on live television, performances for a big audience and reached thousands of youtube views, we decided to start making English songs.

How did you both get involved in music?

That’s a pretty funny story actually. When the first season of Dutch Idols came on TV, we really enjoyed watching it and we had a CD with all the performances on it. When we saw this, we both knew that we wanted to do the same as them, making music and entertaining people. We never thought that it would become so serious though.

Your cover to Iyaz replay is going crazy right now, it has over 1.7 million hits in just over a month, where you expecting it, how did you react, what did you guys do?

Well, the only thing we can say is WOW! We could never even dream about such a big number. The first day we uploaded the video it already got like 100.000 views which we thought was already crazy!! But 1,7 million views!? You couldn’t pay us to believe such a thing, haha!

You done a song called “You make me go”, what are the responses so far?

They’ve been really good so far. Listeners say that the song makes them happy. It’s so funny, we made the song when we were in a ‘’Summer mood’’. We just recorded the song, made a video and posted it up on the internet. Getting such good responses motivates us to make more songs like that.

What kind of music do you guys listen to?

We basically listen to really anything. As long as it sounds good. We prefer pop, r&b and rap, but a good rock song can also be awesome.

Who are your musical inspirations?

That would be a big list… just to name a few of them: Jason Derulo, Lady Gaga, Usher, Lil Wayne, Iyaz etc.

What are you guys currently working on, what should we be expecting from you during this summer break?

We’re working on some original songs and some new covers. We’re actually releasing a cover of Jason Derulo’s ‘’In My Head’’ very soon. We are also trying to collaborate with some other youtube-artists.

How has the journey been so far? What have been some of the key things you’ve learnt so far?

So far it’s been great. It’s absolutely a great feeling to get so many positive reactions on our music. Those reactions are really rewarding since we put so much work into our music. What we definitely learnt so far is that we need to keep focused on our music and be consistent with it.

What are you looking to do better or different now?

We’ll try to work even harder to reach our goal.

What has been one of your most satisfying moments so far?

Ehmm, I think that has to be one of Samii’s live performance in the Netherlands. Just seeing 1500 people singing along to a song YOU made, is one of the best feelings you can have.

Have you guys ever had a challenging process that almost made you guys doubt the path you’ve taken?

Sure. When we decided to built a home-studio, we expected that making music would be much easier, because it was ours and we would be the one that decided when and how long we would record. But when we got started we found out that we didn’t know that much about recording.

At that point it was pretty frustrating because we spent a lot of money on the studio and we didn’t immediately got good results out of it. It just took time, but after a while we learnt to work with it. I guess hard work pays off.

What would you like to say to anyone out there supporting your music?

Thank you for your support. You really put smiles on our faces

What do you guys do for fun?

We’re just teens so we like to do things that most people of our age like to do. Going out, hanging out with friends, going to the cinema and the city, playing basketball and also playing games of course, hehe:D

Where do you both see yourself in the next 5 years?

Sami: Hoping to see a song from me on the billboardcharts haha
Srs: I hope that I will be working together with a lot of famous artists.

Thanks for your time guys.

Thank you too!!

Don’t forget to check out our sponsor: QuickLingo
Quick Lingo is a professional translation and interpretation service provider to the corporate community and public sector.

Hey Guys, I have done this interview with the talented clare gage, clare shares her story on her journey and also some few tips for young entrepreneurs to take note of.

Hope you enjoy the interview!

Hey Clare, how are you doing? Welcome to YHP, Can you introduce yourself to everyone and kindly tell us what you do?

Hi I’m Clare Gage. I graduated from Cumbria Institute of the Arts in 2007 with a first in Contemporary Applied Arts. In my final year at uni I entered the RSA Ceramic Futures award with my designs that brought my two interests of textiles and ceramics together.

I won the Ceramic Futures award and was made a Fellow of the RSA, I now work from my studio in Chesterfield, Derbyshire, my home town. I am a Designer Maker, making and selling my Textile Inspired Ceramics, a collection that developed from the RSA award winning designs.

Tell us about your company and why did you start it?

My company is called Clare Gage. I started it after graduating. I wanted to have a career making and selling my handmade ceramics. I make all my ceramics myself in my studio in Chesterfield. I then sell through shops and galleries across the country. I also sell online at www.notonthehighstreet.com/claregage and at events such as the Country Living Spring Fair. It’s been a real adventure since I started, I’ve been lucky enough to win a number of awards and my designs have been popular with the press so have been featured in a number of magazines.

Currently I’m working on a commission from the Mayor of Chesterfield who has asked me to make a limited edition piece which will be sold to raise money for the Mayoral Appeal supporting local charity Fairplay. It’s a big order so I’m busy making lots of cups and experimenting with new coloured clay!

What do you think are the benefits of starting a business at a young age?

I think starting the business at this age has meant that I am full of enthusiasm and energy. Importantly I have the opportunity to work really hard. I’m able to concentrate on it without too many other responsibilities. I’m keen to make the most of the opportunities that I have in order to build my business in the next few years.

What inspires you and what is the inspiration behind your business?

I’m inspired by lots of things. With my work I’m mostly inspired by textiles, which may seem strange when I’m working in ceramics! I love working in ceramics but as the textile piece is the starting point for each design it’s this that fills me with ideas.

With the business I’m inspired by the successes I see around me. I take inspiration from other business women who have made a career from doing things that they love.

Who are you target market?

I have found that my designs really appeal to people interested in owning things that really stand out. It is often women that are interested in my designs, they have a delicate feminine style. People interested in textile also love my work, especially the Button Cup which always gets attention!

I’ve chosen the events that I attend carefully in order to find my target market. The Country Living Spring Fair is a key event for me.

How have you been marketing your products so far? How effective has it been?

I have put a lot of energy into marketing my products. You can make beautiful things in a studio in Chesterfield but no one can buy them if they don’t know about them! I often send out press releases about interesting news stories. I send my work out to magazine stylists to be used in photo shoots.

Attending the Country Living Spring Fair really made a difference to my marketing opportunities. Stylists saw me there and got in touch after the event to feature the work in their magazine. High profile events like this are a great way to get found.

What do you read or listen to, to keep you motivated, especially when you feel down?

I listen to my friends and family, and my fiancé! They are the people that really support me in my business and encourage me to keep up the good work. It is challenging starting a business and there is an awful lot to learn. I ask advice from local business people and like to attend the creative networking events locally to keep in touch with other people working in a similar way to me.

Also, 6 music keeps me company in the studio when I’m making lots of cups! Music always helps, Save 6 music!!!

What has been your most memorable experience so far?

I think the most memorable experience so far was preparing for and attending the Country Living Spring Fair 2009. I choose to attend really late in the day and had just 3 weeks to get ready! With the help of my friends, family and local businesses I managed to prepare for the event. I was busy at my desk making lots of cups whilst everyone worked busily around me.

It was a great supportive experience. Then on the first day of the event we were awarded the Editor’s Choice Award! This was a great piece of news to tell all the people that had helped in the preparations. I saved the champagne we were given and shared it with everyone when I got back to Chesterfield. It was a fantastic experience and really gave my business a boost.

Does you business offer anything out of the ordinary/something different that no one else is doing at the moment?

My designs are really different, the creative technique that I use to make them always interests people and I hope everyone who chooses one feels that they have something out of the ordinary!

How did you raise money for your business?

I received some funding through winning the RSA project. This gave me the money to buy my kiln, a very important piece of equipment! I raised the rest of the funding from a business angel.

What would you tell other women out there who were thinking of starting their own businesses?

I have so much advice to give! I would say that a really important piece of advice is to be organised. Work out your business plan before you begin, although things never go entirely to plan you need to have things to aim for in order to succeed.

What are your plans for the future?

I aim to extend my range, use some of the many ideas that I’ve got! I also aim to find some larger high profile stockists. I will be taking on a graduate intern towards the end of the year and this should help my business grow. I’ll be working hard to move the business forward and hope to enjoy the challenges this will bring!

Thanks for your time Clare, I wish you the best for the future and hope to speak to you sometimes in the future.

Don’t forget to check out our sponsor: QuickLingo
Quick Lingo is a professional translation and interpretation service provider to the corporate community and public sector.