We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Sani Baladi a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Sani, appreciate you joining us today. It’s always helpful to hear about times when someone’s had to take a risk – how did they think through the decision, why did they take the risk, and what ended up happening. We’d love to hear about a risk you’ve taken.

In my opinion, you have to take a risk to fully commit to something and achieve your goals. When I was still in school as a kid, I told my friends and teachers that I wanted to become a musician. Their response would always be, ”Okay, but what’s your Plan B? You need to study something ”real,” something ”safe,” in case you don’t earn money with your music, like most artists.” I always thought to myself, ”Plan B?” There is nothing else I want to do; there is only a Plan A, and it will somehow work out, despite what everyone else was saying. So, I went on and became a musician with no Plan B. Luckily, my mom always supported me in every way she could, which was a huge help, mentally and financially.

Looking back, I’m proud to say that I made the right decision. Every day, I wake up and think, “I get to make music the whole day and even earn money for something I would do anyway? How cool is that?” I would have never achieved that if I had a Plan B. It’s totally okay to have a side hustle to support your dreams and goals; I did that too. To finance some recordings and instruments, I delivered food. But that’s different than having a Plan B to fall back on if your main goal doesn’t work out. And that mindset will influence you, not giving 100% because you’ll think, “If that doesn’t work out, I’ll do the other thing.” So, long story short, if you want something and dedicate yourself fully to it, it will eventually happen.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I was born and raised in Hamburg, Germany, a vibrant city with a rich creative scene. Surrounded by talented musicians from an early age, I always knew I wanted to become a musician; however, I didn’t know how. As a child, I sang in a church choir and took guitar and piano lessons. Quickly realizing I wanted to pursue my own musical direction, I stopped formal lessons and began teaching myself while crafting my original compositions.

After high school, I continued honing my skills at various schools and universities in cities like Los Angeles and London, collaborating with some of the industry’s finest minds. While having a great interest in classical music, pop music, and film, the idea of combining these passions led me to film music, especially after being inspired by Hans Zimmer’s work.

I started my journey by composing for small, unpaid student projects. Today, I’m involved in diverse projects, ranging from commercials to series and films. A significant milestone was hearing my music in a cinema for the first time at AMC The Americana at Brand in Glendale. To this day, that remains one of the proudest moments of my life.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

To do what I love, bring smiles or evoke emotions through my music, inspire and motivate others, and have the freedom to be creative anywhere, anytime. For me it’s also a way of communication. If I can’t find the right words, my music will.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

That failure, or making mistakes is a negative thing. If you recognize that it’s just part of the learning process, it helps you grow. All the mistakes I’ve made, led me to where I am today and I’m thankful for it.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sanibaladi/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@Sani1594
• Other: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm8810020/