Jonita Gandhi

“When I'm in a good, musical mood, I hop on that feeling and try to make the most of the vibe.”

“I take pride in both my Indian heritage and Canadian upbringing, and I bring that out in my music.”

“I work really hard, it helps me.”

“I strongly believe it's always good for a singer to keep learning.”

“I think we make songs, put it out because we want it to reach people.”

“On a scale of one to 10, I would give my proficiency in Hindi a three.”

“A lot of people think that if they imitate the style of someone very successful then they would get more opportunities, which is never true.”

“I posted my first video simply because YouTube was the new fun exciting thing and I had absolutely zero idea about its potentials.”

“Even at home, there were always old Hindi songs - those of Rafi, R.D. Burman, Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle - and 90s Bollywood music by Shreya Ghoshal and Sonu Nigam - playing. I grew up listening to them.”

“If I had to sing, everybody had to turn around or I would close my eyes so that I don't see anybody. Maybe that is why youtube caught my fancy. You can do it on your own, whenever you feel like, and perfect it before the world gets a glimpse of it!”

“I really have to rely on having a good team around me, people who tell me how it needs to be done, and if I am not singing it right.”

“My dad has been fond of music since childhood. He used to play and sing in his college band in Russia.”

“I do feel like there's information overload and it's becoming harder to stand out because there's so much coming out in the indie space. That being said, I think it's a matter of finding your audience and what kind of music makes you happy.”

“I used to record my song videos, all covers, on my phone and post them.”

“I'm one of those people who 'made it' as a result of posting videos on YouTube. It takes a lot of work to put together your resources to work on your channel.”

“I always make sure to seek the inputs of the composer or lyricist in order to achieve an authentic pronunciation.”

“I am where I am because of YouTube.”

“I can juggle and I love hamsters.”

“I started performing with my dad's band when I was quite young and participated in singing competitions as well. By the time I got to the university, I was performing at international events.”

“I have always been self reliant.”