Sarah Jade- Getting to know South Africa’s next big thing, Musical background, Solo Career and joining Fourth Son South

Interviewed by Duzzy Clayton

INTRO

Sarah is a 19 year old singer songwriter that grew up in Nelspruit, but has since spent her teen years in Pretoria. Sarah started learning to play the guitar when she was 13, after being inspired by Taylor Swift! She has since been writing her own songs and learning various new instruments.

Sarah has been singing since she was little, and eventually went on to take singing lessons when she was 16, and started taking part in singing competitions! Sarah took her first major win when she was 18, winning a bundle including the recording and production of her first single, My Favourite Time, which she released October 2022.

Sarah has recently become one of the lead singers in the indie pop rock band Fourth Son South which she is very passionate about. Though she loves Fourth Son South, she likes to stick to pop with some indie and country influences when it comes to her solo career

We catch up with Sarah and talk about her musical background, solo career and joining Fourth Son South

Enjoy The Read

Interview

Hi Sarah, Welcome to Fanbase Music magazine, can you tell us your background, where did you grow up and what got you into music?

I grew up in Nelspruit but have since spent most of my teen years in Pretoria. I was brought up in a very non-musical household but had always wanted to pursue music and was constantly singing. I was greatly inspired by Taylor Swift, which made me adamant to learn and play the guitar. So, after a lot of convincing, my parents finally agreed to get me a guitar when I was 13. From there on I was hooked, and I began learning a couple more instruments, which I now teach as a teacher as my day job. After moving to Pretoria, I was introduced to a whole new musical world and community, which I feel so blessed to be a part of now. I took up singing lessons when I was 16 and had taken part in a couple singing competitions. Finally in 2021 when I was 18, I became the overall winner of PACISA (Performing Arts Community in South Africa). This gave me the opportunity to release my debut single and launched me straight into the music industry.

How would you describe your genre and sound to people who have not yet heard your solo stuff?

I would say it is a mixture of pop and some indie country influences

Who is some of your main musical influences?

I love a good pop/country mix. I love making music with my guitar, and really enjoy the acoustic feel. Some of my biggest inspirations have been Taylor Swift, Alanis Morrisette, Sasha Alex Sloan, Rex Orange County, Lady Gaga, Olivia Rodrigo, Ed Sheeran, Amy Winehouse, Paramore, and locally Bernice West, to name a few.

Ok, let’s talk about your new single ‘My favourite Time’, can you tell us how that song came about and what is it about?

On the surface this pop song is about a never-ending love you can have for someone that helps you through the worst times, regardless of the type of relationship or whether they are still in your life or not. But the deeper meaning to the song is less about a person, but rather about the positive feelings associated with the bad times in my life, because without these positive feelings, experiences, and outlets, those dark days would have been even darker.

My Favourite Time was written in honour of a friend who had helped me through the most challenging time of my life, in the depths of battling with depression and an eating disorder.

This person had become one of the only things that could bring me joy during these difficult times. We did everything together, went on trips together, lived next door to one another, and their family became mine. She became my favourite person, and as my lyrics go ‘you’re my favourite past time, good time, you’re my favourite every time’.

Where was it recorded?

The song was recorded at the In Tune Production recording studio.

Who else worked on the track?

I had the help of Adri Mocke, and Roelof Bouwer that helped me with some of the song writing, and the production of the song. Then I had the help of the talented Anton Botha with the instrumental within the song.

When you writing songs, do you come up with the music or the lyrics first or can you tell us what your writing process is?

My process changes every time, but with this song specifically, I sat down with my guitar, came up with a melody, added some guitar to it, and formed the lyrics around that. This song took me about 15 minutes to write, so it came to me very naturally.

You have just joined the band Fourth Son South, can you tell us how it joining the band?

It has been an absolute dream come true. I truly never though that anything like this would happen to me, but it was one of those rare ‘right place at the right time’ kind of situations and I couldn’t be happier. I love the band, and they have become my second family, my ‘rock and roll family’ as we call it.

How did it come that you joined Fourth Son South?

I decided to step outside of my comfort zone and signed up for my first ever open mic at Sowaar Bar. This is where Christo ‘Baas’ de Beer first noticed me. Christo had been in contact with Peter Toussaint and was aware that Fourth Son South was on the look out for a new female singer. So just like that, Christo told Peter about me, I met up with the band, and a week or two after that open mic I had joined a band.

The band have just released a single called The Cold, which features you on co –vocals on the track, this is the first song released with you on vocals with the band, can you tell us what the recording process was like for The Cold?

It was a lot of fun. I had essentially met Peter a week before recording so it was a leap of faith, but I got to know him very well. Peter recorded the whole track and gave me plenty of creative opportunities to add or mix things up a bit. It was an incredible experience, and I cannot wait to start recording for our new projects.

The track also has a new music video, can you tell us where was it recorded and what is the concept behind the music video?

The video was recorded at our rehearsal room called J Room. We had set up a bunch of phones and spent a couple hours recording the ‘live’ performance shots. A couple days later we then came back to J Room to record the crazier and sillier clips. These silly clips were my favourite to shoot, as the band is just so goofy and make me laugh so much, I cry. We decided on mixing these serious and funny videos together to make the video interesting and watch worthy.

Back to your solo work and when you play live, can you tell us what a typical Sarah Jade gig set up is like?

I usually set up my guitar and keyboard to sing some awesome covers, and plenty originals, with the help of Peter Toussaint adding a little volume with his incredible guitar skills.