Remember the heydays of YouTube during the mid to late 2010s when everyone was obsessed with listening to covers and mashups of popular songs? In the slurry of thousands of YouTubers sharing their talents, the name William Singe stood out. His velvety voice that dripped with honey, paired with his wildly amazing ability to mix a song’s original genre and turn it into something completely new, launched him to the frontline of the platform and sent all of us into a frenzy.
My introduction to William Singe came in the form of a mashup video he had done with another ultra-famous YouTuber, Conor Maynard. William was a guest on SING OFF, a series Conor was known for, where the pair sang over the beat of I Don’t Wanna Live Forever by ZAYN and Taylor Swift.
From there, I was hooked. And thanks to CreatorWeek, I had the privilege of catching him for a quick chat, where I fell deeper into the trenches, that is William Singe. I’ll be damned if I didn’t share the experience with you, my dear reader, for William is an artist that deserves more praise and recognition.
Early Days on YouTube
In case I haven’t made it clear, I grew up in the era of covers and mashups on YouTube. This is also how I learned of William Singe’s unmatched talent. His covers on the platform often involved breaking down and remixing popular songs, where he injected his twist—giving millions of listeners like myself a chance to reimagine these tunes.
But for an artist like himself, William managed to walk the tight line between remaining authentic to his artistic vision while covering someone else’s song. He says, “I would take the song, I’d look at it and ask if this song was written for me or if I wrote this song, how would I go about producing, singing, and performing it? How does it speak to me?”
He went on to share, “I think through that, I really found the uniqueness in a lot of my covers, which was really fun to do because you take a song like Hotline Bling and you slow it right down and you turn it into a slow jam, and people still appreciate that.”
Of course, being a creator on a platform as big as YouTube opens a person up to tons of comments – it just comes with the territory. However, comments are not always necessarily a bad thing. For creatives, online feedback gives them a peek behind their audience’s minds and helps them understand more about their fans.
Take it from William! The man’s first video was released 12 years ago, and he’s been going strong ever since. “Online feedback is so important. I first started music because it was a diary for me. But you always kind of want to see how other people react. If other people don’t react to certain songs, then you go back to the drawing board, and you kind of have to find that balance of what sits well with me, and it feels true to myself, but it also sits well with everyone else, and they can relate, and like they’re enjoying it, and they’re digesting it.”
He goes on to share that online comments have helped shape a lot of his music and nudged him into the direction he’s taken with his music. But at the heart of it, an artist’s music has to stay true to them and their vision, which can be another tricky situation.
So, how did he manage to toe the line, you might ask? Well, according to him, trust is a major factor.
“I would just kind of listen to the people I trusted around me, first and foremost. And then I would look at the analytics as well as how people reacted to the song. Sometimes it hurts when I really put my all into something, and maybe it doesn’t go over as well as I’d hoped. But then I also have those moments where I’ll have songs that I think are kind of alright, and people are like, this is sick.”
Big Break
Of course, we can’t have a chat with William Singe without talking about his big break! From YouTube sensation to chart-topping international artist, William was given a golden ticket when he was offered the opportunity to collaborate with Jonas Blue on the song, Mama.
I remember the days when you couldn’t escape the song on TikTok’s predecessor, Musical.ly – it was simply everywhere. The song quickly wiggled its way into everyone’s heart and was like an earworm you couldn’t kick.
“There’s been a lot of pivotal moments in my career, some good, some bad. Obviously, having the collaboration with Jonas Blue. I’m so grateful for the opportunity that Jonas gave to me and being able to step out of my genre and experiment in a world I haven’t really done and seeing how well the song did,” William so kindly shared.
The collaboration completely launched William’s career into a whole new stratosphere of fame, which for some might have been difficult to handle. We often see similar cases where an artist loses themselves to fame, but not for William. In fact, from my quick 20-minute chat with him, I found him to be one of the most genuine and down-to-earth guys I’ve ever had the pleasure of meeting!
Speaking on how he coped with the – virtual – overnight fame that came with working with Jonas Blue, William said, “My parents helped me kind of see that fame is a state of mind – like it doesn’t really exist. I just feel like a normal guy, you know? I put in work, and I love my craft and it was a joint thing of luck, timing, hard work and talent. It all kind of came together in that one moment. So I don’t think of myself as famous or anything like that.”
He went on to add, “I consider myself very lucky. But at the same time, I did put in the work as well. I’ll never see myself or put myself on a pedestal. And if I did, I’m sure my parents would have something to say to me about that. And I love them for that. I’ve always kind of kept my head on my shoulders,” Didn’t I tell you? Based on this interaction alone, I knew William was like the personification of sunshine – the epitome of humility, which I loved.
Collaborations
Since collaborating with Jonas Blue, William Singe has collaborated with many other artists throughout his career. It should come as no surprise that writing and making music is a very personal process. Imagine bearing it all in front of a booth full of people as they listen to some of your most intimate thoughts—I’d pass. It’s not just bearing your soul; mixing different creative processes can sometimes be challenging, especially when you lack the chemistry.
However, according to William, collaborations are basically balancing acts. Think of it as a Venn diagram. Sure, each artist has their own sound and process that is unique to them but it’s essential to find the part that overlaps. While mutual understanding and respect are usually established between the parties, finding that balance can be tricky.
“I’ll step into a room, and I’ll be as open as I can. I’m always open to however anyone wants to create. But at the same time, when it comes down to my turn in recording, I’m going to approach it how I’m going to feel comfortable, and I’m sure they’ll respect that as musicians themselves,” he explained.
Given the vulnerability that comes with the affair, I wondered if the chemistry between artists plays a big role in the success of a writing and recording session. But William seemed to hold the answer to the question itching in my brain. “I think it’s important to build a rapport with artists that you want to work with. I’ve been in rooms where I didn’t know the people, and they throw us in the room and asked us to write a song. Most of those songs, you never see the light of day because there isn’t a personal connection or the vibe’s not there,” he explains.
“So it does pay to be vulnerable and build rapport. If I’m open, I’d expect the person I’m working with to be just as open as me.”
Exploring Musical Genres
If you’re familiar with William’s career, you’ll know that he loves to mix things up occasionally – testing the limits of his musical boundaries. This comes as absolutely no surprise, seeing that he’s always had the talent to alchemise a song’s genre at the drop of a hat.
From slow jams like Whānau to lively tempos like California On You, William Singe has proven that his artistry spans across various genres and styles. A lot of the time, an artist’s uniqueness comes from the genre they chose. Take for example, Nirvana, a rock band known as the pioneers of the grunge movement – you would never hear Kurt Cobain release a country song, right? However, William’s uniqueness comes from more than just the styles of music he chooses; it comes from his life experiences.
“I guess my uniqueness comes from my personal journey. Everything that I write comes from a page out of my life or something that I can relate to in my life. So I think that’s how I find the uniqueness in the expanding genres of experimenting with this and that. I just take a page out of my diary, and if I’m feeling like an upbeat song or a downbeat, I just experiment and have fun with it, ” he shared.
William continued to say that evolution is imperative as an artist. When you’re an artist—or a creative, for that matter—staying stagnant and not stepping out of your comfort zone holds you back from becoming a multifaceted artist. Given man’s complexity, staying in one lane and sticking to one sound makes it hard for you to connect with your audience or your fans.
Being unafraid to test the boundaries of one’s musical capabilities is a daunting task. I mean, I’m afraid to try out a new shade of lipstick. I couldn’t imagine adopting different musical personalities, so I wondered why an artist like William was so willing to keep expanding his musical genres.
To which he says, “I think it all comes back to my roots. I was raised in quite a musical household. No matter where I looked in each corner, there would be a guitar or, a bass guitar, or a piano over here; there was always something to tinker on. It was nice to always have a contrast in the house. Today, we’re listening to Led Zeppelin, or today, we’re listening to Stevie Wonder.”
While William believes that regardless of your background if you have a feel for music, that’s all you need. But personally for him, having been raised in a household that embraced any type of music, it provided an open space for him to approach songwriting and production. His parents just get the vibe – which is all anyone can ask for!
Words of Wisdom
William was at CreatorWeek to share his story and help other aspiring musicians. For all who have always dreamed of following their passions and making it big one day, here are a few wise words from William himself.
“I think your career in music and life kind of go hand in hand, so you’ve got to be true to yourself, first and foremost. You’ve got to trust your gut instincts and, you know, if it feels right to you, it probably is. And you just have to kind of roll with the punches and understand that it can be a fickle business, but if you keep the right people around you and you keep your head on your shoulders, you usually come out on top,” he explained.
He further shares that it’s important to stay true to yourself, enjoy the creative process, and trust your craft. William also emphasised how, in this day and age of unmatched creative freedom, an artist shouldn’t be stuck in a box.
“If you want to do a rap record over here, and then you want to do a rock record tomorrow, and then you want to do an opera record another day or a country record, like, you can do that. And through that, you find who you are. So enjoy that process and be open at all times.” Could we be expecting a country record from William in the future? Who knows!
Before we parted, William left me with words of wisdom I think everyone, aspiring musician or not, must hear. “I think optimism, for me, was really important growing up because I didn’t have a lot of people that believed in me and I just believed in myself so much. I wanted it so bad that I made it happen. I don’t think I’m overly talented. I think I work really hard, and through that hard work, my talent has progressed,” he says.
Like a cherry on top of a sundae, William finished it all off by saying, “You have to keep optimistic. You have to be an optimist in terms of making your dreams come true and kind of chasing things. If you’re looking at everything so cynically all the time, it’s always going to play out negatively, isn’t it?” A little faith, trust, and hard work are all anyone needs to make it. All you have to do is keep believing in your dreams and, most importantly, yourself.
Sadly, the chat had to end sometime. But in 20 simple minutes, I had learnt so much about William’s career, life, and personal mantra. I stand by the fact that he is one of the most humble people I’ve ever had the pleasure of meeting.
Every word and piece of advice was dripping with sincerity – which was incredibly refreshing to hear. For all who have yet to hear of William Singe, please do yourself a favour and check out his official YouTube account, Spotify, and Instagram page!
Photos by Pauline Caoile of the DANAMIC Team. Additional visual courtesy of CreatorWeek.
