Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Sonca Nguyen. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Alright, Sonca thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Are you happy as a creative professional? Do you sometimes wonder what it would be like to work for someone else?

I’m extremely happy with my choice to pursue a career as an artist/creative. It wouldn’t be as fulfilling to myself to not fully invest and bet on myself and I know mentally, I couldn’t make it without music.

I do think about the benefits of a regular job. I think about this monthly actually! Because of the extent of my job(s) / career, I often find myself sometimes in difficult financial situations and things can change in a month. One month can be demanding from my clients and projects, and just last month, I was stuck in the slowest period of work so of course I thought about it.

I would say the financial stability, regulated benefits of healthcare and consistent hours is what draws me a 9-5. I think when you mention working in an industry that isn’t that, It can be hard to imagine how much people have to do in order to make up for the things that they give up by not choosing that path. I respect both work styles as I’ve been in corporate and know how they function. Though, I do know that I wouldn’t mentally and creatively thrive in that environment and that was a decision that I made for myself.

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 am a music producer, songwriter, and audio engineer. I work freelance for independent films that include duties in scoring, music production and composition, and music supervision. I also frequently work at a recording studio in Saint Louis that provides me with the benefits of a professional recording setup and a great environment to hone in on my audio engineering skills daily. I am actually the first POC and woman audio engineer they’ve had since they’ve opened in 2008. Since then, we’ve added another woman to the company and are striving to invite more.

What sets me apart from others would be my work ethic and genuine passion for the music that I create. I’m a fan first off and I think that’s important because you’re supposed to enjoy the music you make and create and I believe that pushes me to work even harder on specific songs and projects that I have the pleasure of working on. I also pride myself in collaboration with friends that I see potential in and do my best to hire them or collaborate with them to showcase that talent in projects that I think aligns with them. I’m very fortunate to be working with a ton of talented people that I also call my friends.

Is there mission driving your creative journey?

I enjoy creating goals and checking them off once I get to it. I think it’s important to revisit your goals and adjust if things change whether that be personal or professional. My goals last year was to get a sync placement and then work with a publishing company which I’ve gotten the chance to do. I’m extremely into KPOP and have always been a fan from 2nd generation Kpop to 4th generation groups now. I would love to get my foot in the door to a genre of music that I’ve listened to when I was a kid and am making it a goal to somehow work in KPOP. If that doesn’t work out, I can pivot but this will be a lifelong goal for me!

In your view, what can society to do to best support artists, creatives and a thriving creative ecosystem?

I think providing work opportunities or any kind of opportunities to highlight those artists and creatives. More than just musical performances or acts, there’s so many creatives in the industry that work behind the scenes. I’m a BTS girl and don’t love the attention/spotlight so it’s harder for me to promote myself as a creative if I’m not seen. I think hiring out background creatives in more events, providing grants that aren’t just labeled for ”performing artists” and providing resources to help like grants, workshops, etc. is always a plus for creatives.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.soncamusic.com
• Instagram: https://instagram.com/soncamnguyen
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sonca-nguyen-0424/

Image Credits

Jeannie Liautaud Maul