Sylwia has been comfortable performing on stage since she was 6. The singer-vlogger is only 25, but her career is already nothing short of amazing. She was 12 when she wrote an email to the Disney Channel, and a few years later, she became a sitcom star. She then launched her YouTube channel where, apart from her vlog content, she also posts her music videos. In addition, she is also present on most social media platforms, producing content consistently, so it’s not too much of a surprise that she has a huge following, and, a short while ago, she visited Budapest.
You are a singer, a YouTuber and a composer at the same time. And you’re only 25. How can you manage all these things by yourself?
I was 6 when I first walked on stage. My parents enrolled me in an acting course, so these were my first steps towards a career as a performer. Right from the beginning, I loved it, and even at that tender age, I knew that I wanted to be a singer. I had taken lots of singing lessons and participated in many competitions, but this wasn’t enough for me, so I wrote to the Disney Channel when I was 12. I gave them my phone number and remained hopeful. Then, 5 years later, they called me back. They offered me an audition for the programme „I Love Violetta”, and I got a part. After the series ended, I knew that I had to come up with a new idea to make my musical dreams come true. Inspired by an ad, I went to a radio host job interview, which ultimately earned me my first music contract. I still find it hard to believe that my passion and my job are the same. I express my feelings through music, and use YouTube to connect with my fans. I’m really grateful to them for the inspiration and motivation they give me every day.
Earlier, at the beginning of your career, you also worked as a TV host for Disney Channel’s Polish programme, and also had a role in a TV series. How did this affect your later music and YouTuber careers?
The experience I gained from making I Love Violetta is priceless. I saw for the first time in my life how a major production was managed, and had the opportunity to learn how to be a real professional actress. I liked this environment so much that I later applied to specialise in cinematography at a university, and right after the shoots were over, I started my YouTube channel, because I was missing this kind of creative work. I’m happy with my decision, because many people who knew me from the TV show started following me. In other words, I owe the bulk of my following to the TV series, and my fans keep telling me they have been ‘with me’ since I Love Violetta. Incidentally, did you know it wasn’t only broadcast in Poland, but also in Hungary, the Czech Republic and Slovakia? It was really weird to see and hear myself dubbed.
You already have a huge follower base, and handle several different social media platforms. It seems pretty easy from the outside. Is it really that easy, or are you just that good at it?
I’ve already been doing it for 8 years, so I kind of feel this is my life. I get tired, of course, when we shoot 17 hours a day, through 16 days on end, for a feature film, but these things are already part of my daily routine. I love what I do, and would never do anything that I wasn’t feeling comfortable doing. I’ve had my share of bad experiences. For instance, four years ago I lived next to an underground station, where fans kept stalking me, so I would take a detour to get home, so as not to let them know where I lived. On one occasion, though, I wasn’t vigilant enough, and three girls saw me go home, and later climbed up on my balcony. I panicked, so I moved to a more secure place. I haven’t had such problems since. I learned a lot through the years, so now I know what part of my life I want to share on social media platforms, and what part I want to keep to myself. I am still learning to deal with these things, but all in all, the benefits of this profession still outweigh the bad things.
The video for your new song PRAWIE (ALMOST) has just come out, and it’s a light-hearted, summer story about unfulfilled love. What inspires your songs?
I normally write about my own life, so each song is about one of my personal memories. Sometimes they are bad memories, which I just can’t put into spoken words, but when I grab a piece of paper and a pencil, my emotions and thoughts start gushing. But they can be happy memories as well, which I shared with my friends or my fans.
The new song, PRAWIE was originally meant to be a sad one, because I had just been dumped by my boyfriend at the time. We had been together for a few months, but he broke up with me, because he was afraid of commitment. In retrospect, however, I tended to look back on our beautiful memories together, so he became my favourite ‘Almost’. Hence the idea for my song.
You seem to be travelling a great deal. How do you choose your destinations? What are your favourite places to go to when you’re somewhere new? Who do you like to travel with the most?
I adore big cities, where I can discover interesting buildings and admire their architectural beauty, especially in Europe, because I love the style of architecture here. Also, history has always attracted me, so I like learning new things about the city or the country I am travelling to. Of course, I also enjoy going on an all inclusive holiday from time to time, where I have nothing to worry about, but I still prefer shorter and more active city trips. I love meeting and talking to the local people. They can tip you off about the coolest places to visit, or recommend the best restaurants in town.
Getting to know the local food, history and culture is always a must for me. I guess you can never learn too much about anything, so I keep improving my knowledge, I learn new languages, and travel a lot to meet as many people as possible, from all over the world, and broaden my perspective.
I used to travel alone frequently, because after the TV series was over, I continued to work for Disney as a journalist, so I mostly travelled for work, but now, whenever I can, I like travelling with my friends, or with my boyfriend, when I want something more romantic.
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