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<p>Sol Stringer was born Solly Mosetle on 1st Nov 1983 in Krugersdorp, South Africa. He is the sixth of seven children which ties into his love for the six-string instrument i.e., the guitar. In addition to guitarist, his talent titles encompass vocalist, song writer, actor, producer, voiceover artist and he had provincial colours for hockey, in High School too. He describes his music as his mouthpiece for the love-language between himself and God.</p>
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<p>Writing the lyrics to popular songs in his 5th grade notebook, preceded his love for rock music in high school. As a teen, he listened to ‘Lenny Kravitz’, ‘Aerosmith’ &amp; ‘Jimmy Hendricks’ who inspired him to pursue the guitar. Immediately after high school he decided to study music and desired to be in the entertainment industry. It was at Southwest Gauteng College where Sol first experienced his power with instruments. He learned to play the bass, followed by the guitar and the piano was an addition to understanding musical notes. He transferred to Parktown College for his second year. A highlight from his time there was being a part of ‘Malice’ a heavy metal band that performed for a 2-year term at various venues then split-up. Thereafter he rejointed a church band and to his advantage the director introduced him to other “musicians and artists” from different provinces. This led him to join ‘Muzart’ a soulful, jazz-funk group which was later nominated for SAMA Awards, Metro Fm Awards and are internationally acclaimed in magazines such as ‘Blues and Soul’ in the UK. The group separated and he saw it fit to pursue his solo career as an artist.</p>
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<p>“Initially I wanted my sound to be electro and have different artists ‘jump’ on the sound. However, while playing in studio, my friend &amp; co-worker, ‘DJ Clap’ encouraged me to sing my own songs”, said Sol. Although under immense pressure, he worked up the courage and sang. With a pile of written songs, he headed to studio where he worked with the likes of producer ‘Vuyo Manyike’ who’s worked with ‘Sjava’, ‘Emtee’, ‘Zama Jobe’, ‘Simphiwe Dhana’, and others. “Lerato” was the first single released by Sol Stringer the guitarist. “Lerato” was a tribute to Madiba in both Sesotho and Setswana. I (Palesa) felt that it was very soothing and outside of Rock. In this he is very versatile in his sound having studied the mother of Pop music i.e., Jazz. There are songs like “Far away” with ‘Black Myst’ and “Happy” with ‘Dj Clock’. Sol’s live performances are evidence of his love for rock music. His sound is also “ravey” and worthy of being played at a rock fest, but I know there are elements of jazz too. He is signed to his own record label “String out Loud Media” a sub company to the consortium “String out Loud Group”.</p>
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<p>I asked whether his versatility allows him to explore different areas of his arts (i.e. the acting, producing etc…). To which he answered that acting was his first love. “Since childhood I dreamt of being an actor and had the passion for it. I wanted to be a presenter but found myself without support.” said Sol. ‘She is king’ was his screen debut which again, was prompted by Vuyo Manyike. In 2017 he shot some advertisements, but some weren’t screened. This did not deter him from music, his primary focus. He performed at The Miss Soweto Beauty Pageant in 2019 and 2020. In 2021 he released “Believe”, a very inspirational song, and it tells us the listeners not to lose hope. Sol said, “I had organised a producer to get to my studio and hoped the producer would have something for me in his archives, but to my amazement, he told me to create a song that was personal. I started playing 3 specific chords which are now the hook, and I thought about the lyrics to a Jekalyn Carr song where she says believe. ‘Khumo Leff’ a great song writer was there, and we started writing. It was more of believing in it and seeing it before it happened. And the Holy Spirit was there with us. It was an experience which cannot be replicated nor reproduced.” He had to hold on and believe it’s going to happen despite the tough times, he was experiencing. Afterall, he “was once a part of a band that did great things”. They were on another level. He’d given his all to the band, there was breach of trust and having to start on his own, getting into studio to record. In hindsight, he thanks God that everything happened the way that it did. There’s a possibility that it may have happened another way but he’s grateful that it happened the way it did. It pushed him outside of his comfort zone. “I believe in God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. Most of the time I am inspired by the Holy Spirit.” He believes his music will be the springboard for more screentime, and voiceovers. So, he journeys on.</p>
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<p>Business side of things<br>It is important for an artist to write their own music because the writer gets the money. Royalties go to the owner of the song when the song is played on the radio or when other people sing your song. The singer gets little to nothing from singing music they do not own. Other advantages of writing and producing your own music is that you’re able to birth your vision. He adds publishing your own music is also an additional advantage as it becomes another income stream. His challenges as a musician in his own record label were centred around the money for the music video, photoshoot, graphic designer, to get the song mixed and mastered as well as the recording facilities. As a musician signed to a record label, a certain budget is allocated to the musician by the producer since these are essentially the producer’s responsibility. However, the producers dictate what is released and they own the songs, so they dictate how much the artist gets paid (i.e., small percentage which is often stipulated on the contract). In his career there were times when favours came into play and people within his circle, were helping each other. Unfortunately, there are those who did not follow through. By God’s grace he was able to get things done on his own. Although the music video he shot for “Believe” was challenging, he now has the experience. The ultimate is to become a bigger brand. He also has apparel which can be purchased by contacting his accounts, listed below.</p>
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<p>Music on digital platforms<br>For the single “Believe”, he has a distribution contract with Ziiki Media who put him on iTunes, Spotify, and other platforms. With his upcoming album, he’ll be broadcasting/publishing the music himself. He acknowledges that distribution companies have the knowledge of where to broadcast the music and how to distribute it. They have renewable contracts that last for specified durations and there are mediums such as CD baby and song trader which distribute music. There’s composite sampling for radio and Capasso for composers to license their music.</p>
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<p>Closing Salutation<br>Musicians have many experiences which they share with their listeners. The journey for him, included sleeping on a friend’s couch, sleeping on the floor somewhere. Music helped him establish who he is. “It’s nontangible, unseen &amp; it is indescribable”. The guitar takes him to another world. He quoted an unknown author who said: “Musicians are people that are close to really experiencing who God is.” His passion empowered him to stick these experiences through. Music is more than a career to him, it’s possibly a calling from which he cannot be separated. Sol Stringer keeps his head above the water, and he’s got it going on with a new single we should look out for, and a tour sometime this year. We’re done believing because it’s happening!</p>
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<p>Email Bookings: solstringerbookings@gmail.com<br>Socials: https://www.instagram.com/realsolstringer?r=nametag<br>https://www.facebook.com/SolStringer/<br>https://twitter.com/RealSolStringer?s=09</p>
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<p>Videos<br>https://youtube.com/watch?v=C-UhLP3Mwkc&amp;feature=share<br>https://youtube.com/channel/UCThtn3-E-CSfqWtKMOO4X-A<br>https://youtube.com/channel/UCUl_sY2H8pAYTKTYtdOBohA</p>
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