Sydney Jo Jackson is a Birmingham-born, London-based artist with a voice that resonates with raw emotion and unfiltered truth. Blending soul, blues, and funk with a modern edge, her music tells powerful stories of resilience, healing, and self-discovery. From her debut single You Should Be Here to collaborations with top producers, Sydney is carving her own path in the industry. In this exclusive interview, she opens up about her influences, creative process, and the message she hopes to share through her music.
Hello Sydney Jo Jackson, welcome to Blackbird News! What inspired you to start writing and performing music?
There was never one defining moment. I’ve always picked up a mic and wanted to sing. Even back in the day when I had my old karaoke machine.
One thing I do recall vividly is watching Nenah Cherry’s Buffalo Stance video and that for me was someone who I could identify with.
She was mixed race like me, had similar hair and I loved the energy and attitude in her performance. This mixed with watching cartoons like Jem and the Holograms inspired me greatly in wanting to pursue music.
I used to make my mom sit on the stairs while I hid behind the door and sang, then she got me on all the talent shows in school performing Gloria Estefans Doctor beat for people and I was hooked.
With regards to writing, I used to have a diary and I would often put things in there that read like songs in case anyone found it and I could pretend it was something I’d heard. From then onwards I used to just write things I felt on paper, napkins anything and then sing them to other people’s songs. Now I’m fortunate enough to be able to work with producers on music together.
How would you describe your musical style and influences?
My musical style is very eclectic. My music ranges depending on my mood. I think it’s hard to stick to one genre or sound as we will always evolve as people and I think that trying to limit your creativity to a genre of the sound leads to being trapped. I love to be free and that’s something I fight very hard to do in not only my music but also my life.I like to challenge the fact that we have to stick to one genre to become established. I want my music to be honest and if I wanna write something that sounds like it should be from an Alanis Morissette album I want to do that if I wanna write something that sounds like it should be on a Britney Spears album and then I wanna do that too.
If I can’t be honest with the people who listen to my music, then I’m not being honest with myself, and that in turn depreciates my craft.
If I have to describe my sound I guess I would just call it hormonal haha.
My mom was always playing music like Kool and the Gang, Phil Collins, and Eric Clapton. Then she would mix it with Bob Marley, maybe some Meatloaf. So I heard a lot when I was growing up.
My preferences as I got older were Toni Braxton, Deborah Cox , The Spice Girls, Sade and of course Prince.
I also grew up listening to loads of pop music, which I think helps with my songwriting. I feel like the 90s songs were so well written and had such storytelling.
Can you tell us more about the creative process behind “You Should Be Here”?
I was challenging myself to write a song a day for 30 days as I had become slightly detached fromMusic and I was just chilling in my room in Bali and just looked up instrumental beats and Jonas Beaur came up and I got my phone as I always do and started making a voice note. I don’t ever really close my eyes when I write and for this one, I shut my eyes, and when it finished, I realised I had written the song and didn’t need to do much editing as I’d created all the words already. So I feel like the song kind of wrote itself and I was just a vessel to bring it to life.
How do you use your music to address personal experiences and challenges?
Sometimes I can be misunderstood and I have a very short fuse so instead of causing animosity or making a situation something doesn’t need to be then I try to make music to express whatever emotion is that I’m feeling at that time. It’s kind of a thing I’ve learnt to do as a self-help mechanism which I can now share with others.
I feel like I go through it so that I can help people to get through it also.
What message do you hope to convey to your listeners through your music?
That you can survive and that whatever it is you’re going through is temporary. Sadly even happiness so it’s about being present in the moment and embracing being alive and finding your power in that.
You’ve collaborated with several notable artists. Can you share any highlights from those experiences?
I loved working with Redondo and Guz. Those are two artists who were so kind to me and helped me to break into the industry. I didn’t understand much about releasing music or the business side of things and they were kind enough to allow me to release music in a professional capacity how it should be.
What are your aspirations for your music career in the coming years?
I really would like to be back in the studio and create maybe another two albums worth of music as I feel right now I’m going through a lot and want to be able to document that. I love being in the studio as it’s my second home,
I would also like to be doing shows internationally and of course, be acknowledged for awards but mainly I want to experience what it is like to have people singing back my music and letting me know what a positive impact it’s had on them.
I would also love to be on Jools Holland. That has always been a dream of mine from a young age.
What advice would you give to aspiring musicians who are facing similar challenges?
Stay Different! Do not conform with society’s image of normal as nothing magic happens there. Make music that sucks and learn from it. Don’t be afraid to fail and start again, you can only learn from it. Be you! Because it may be you that the world needs.
You can connect with Sydney Jo Jackson on Instagram @sydneyjojackson, Facebook @sydneyjojackson, and TikTok @sydneyjojackson
