UK-based Guyanese Erica Bissember has recently embarked on a career in music, having honed her vocal and piano skills since she was a girl. The singer/songwriter who goes by the stage name Erica Sember, released her second song titled “Mean It” in February.
“Feedback has been great! It’s been a lot more work than the first single. I was overwhelmed by it, but people love it,” Erica said. “This one is hard hitting. It’s about meaning what you say… I wrote it after leaving my last relationship. I wrote it when I was fed up and wanted action…”
To date she has written seven songs and just about all of them reflect personal experiences, the songwriter divulged. She said she believes fans connect to music when they can relate to the situations and experiences described.
Like “Mean It”, Erica’s debut single, an R&B song called “Trust Me” is also based on past experience. That song, she noted, is more the slow, melodic kind, one that leaves a haunting melody even when the song is no longer playing.
“Trust Me” was written when the singer was dealing with a broken heart. The song talks about her doing everything in her power for the relationship and asks that her significant other trust her.
Erica ventured into a career in music sometime last year when she was inspired to do some introspection, thereby finding her niche.
However, as mentioned earlier, the singer started her musical journey while still a girl. Erica, who was born in Georgetown, left Guyana when she was five years old for the UK. At ten years old, Erica began piano lessons, an instrument she still enjoys playing today.
“I was obviously quite different than the children in the UK. In Guyana you’re allowed to be loud but here you have to be a bit more proper… but, I transitioned and made a few friends,” she said.
The singer also shared of joining the choirs of the various schools she attended. Piano teacher and vocal trainer, Thea Wray, Erica shared, also contributed to where she is today.
Though she knew how to play the piano, she kept quiet about that, especially when she became a teenager. However, her annual piano show prevented things from staying under wraps for too long. Today she still plays here and there.
Some years ago, Erica took up vocal training again. “… I would lock myself in our sitting room and sing my heart out and put on pretend shows,” the singer reminisced.
She is now coached by Angelina Luzi and managed by a close friend and colleague of more than ten years, Sara Khan.
Currently, the singer is working on a new song, one that talks about empowerment and finding herself along the way. While “Mean It” boasts a fusion of the Blues and Disco genres, Erica noted that she is not confined to any particular genre neither will her EP be. If all goes as planned, the artiste hopes to deliver her EP to the public before the end of the year. Erica shared that the five or six songs to be featured will be about love, loss, and discovering one’s true self.
The singer has frequented East London’s Pirate Studios over the past year to work with producer Oshow Davis.
Among the singers who have influenced Erica’s musical journey are Alicia Keys, Michael Jackson, Beyonce, Aretha Franklin, Mary J Blige, Nina Simone, Amy Winehouse and Christina Aguilera.
“Music is so many things. It’s definitely therapy for me. Music is a soundtrack to my life. And, remembering now some of the songs that dominated parts of my life, music can also be healing,” she said. “You can listen to a song and it kind of absolves what you’re feeling. It’s an expression of life; when I can’t say what I’m feeling, I can get it out when I’m writing a song.”
The challenges have not been many, Erica said thankfully. For her one of the few is that with there being many talented artistes, getting her music distributed may be a problem, but she is staying positive. Already, her two singles are being played on all digital platforms.
Another of her challenges is being a woman in a man’s world. Both she and her manager have to deal with this all the time, but the way they are beginning to see it, is that they get to be a surprise to the people who underestimate women. “I take no offence to it; it’s just a reflection of how some people think. Now it’s hilarious to surprise them,” said Erica.
Having embarked on her music career during a pandemic, Erica is yet to perform onstage and this is something she is most certainly looking forward to.
With places opening up in London, Erica is slated to perform at a number of gigs over the summer and is preparing for them.
“Pretty much every evening, I’m in the studio. I have a home studio. Me and my producer would have sessions. I have hundreds of voice notes on my phone with different hooks and we create the production around that. His [the producer] schedule is tight and mine too so sometimes our schedules don’t line up. But, we try to sit down like ever two days and go over everything. I’m very touchy when it comes to final touches. My creativity never ends. I would be like, ‘This sounds great, but we can make it better’. I like adding new elements to the songs. My producer would remind me that at some point we need to stop,” she laughed.
Erica is set to visit Guyana in the near future, and she is working on adding a few open-mic nights to her agenda while here. She has several radio appearances scheduled already. “Trust Me” and “Mean It” have already had airplay on Hits and Jams and 104.1 FM.
When she is not all about music, Erica likes to explore the outdoors away from the city bustle, spend time with friends and family and meditate. Meditation, she said, has allowed her to think clearer, find her true self and has guided her along the journey she is set on.
The singer/songwriter hopes to leave a legacy of being an artist who was true to herself and someone who was able to connect with many around the world through her music. “I want to have been someone who someone was able to lean on whether physically or through my music. I want my music to heal the broken…,” she said.
