Durban musician Leigh Hondy (pictured) is set to unleash his soulful side with his seven-track album Imagination, which demonstrates a variety of genres such as rock, pop, blues and jazz.
During our one-on-one, the friendly singer chatted about his career in music and what people can expect from this release.
Describing his music as “soulful”, he says he’s always been a performer.
“I auditioned for Idols 2011 and made it to the theatre round. And I’ve been playing the guitar for seven years, having started performing about three years ago. I went to open mic comp-etitions and then decided to do music full time.”
As an aspiring musician, Hondy, 21, has performed at many major gigs such as the Spogweni Music Festival in 2011 and the Madiba Celebration Concert in Cape Town.
His lyrics are meaningful, coupled with a raspy and bold voice which stands out. It’s evident from listening to his album that he has a sense of tight rhythm in his guitar playing. Standout tracks are Oh Girl and Driving In Your car.
What’s interesting about this rising star is his reason for being a musician. He’s definitely a man with a purpose: “My ultimate goal is to be happy, it’s not about the money, though I want a lot of money so that I can do whatever I want to at any time. I believe in love, true love. I believe in having fun. Life is about having fun, the world is my playground and I’m going to play all my life.”
For whom is Hondy’s music most suited? He says: “I make songs for every audience. I have pop songs like Bruno mars’s songs for youngsters. Then there’s stuff for adults. But I don’t make club music. I don’t really like techno. All my stuff is based on instruments.”
For Hondy, the best thing about being an artist is being creative on stage through his art: “Also, when people appreciate what you do and enjoy your music. At the same time, it’s what I love doing.”
Those who are as intrigued as I am by Hondy’s music will be pleased to know he has big plans for this year.
“I plan to do a lot more live performances and you can expect to hear my stuff on radio. Also, I’m going to work on a music video for one of my songs off my album and I’m going to go around the country and do what I do best – perform,” he says.