Hope Sonam

Taking the personal and making it universal is just one of this 24-year-old Atlanta based singer-songwriter's talents. Delivering catchy songs in a voice reminiscent of Shania Twain is another.

Raised in the small town of Rome, Georgia, Hope Sonam was encouraged to explore her talents at an early age. "My family always nurtured creativity," she says. "My dad is a cartoonist and my parents sang with my brother and I all the time. As a kid, I remember laying in bed with my Gran and instead of her singing me to sleep, I would sing her to sleep." Shania was indeed one of Hope's favorites when she was growing up along with Mary-Chapin Carpenter, Bonnie Raitt and The Dixie Chicks. But her taste wasn't limited to country. Some of the other artists she loved as a kid range from Alanis Morissette to The Spin Doctors.

This amalgam of influences is apparent on her self-titled EP due to be released in the fourth quarter of 2011. Hope co-wrote three of the songs herself with former Sugarland drummer / songwriter Simone Simonton. These range from the exuberant "You Love I," which wouldn't sound out of place on a Sugarland record, to the more reflective "Big Things," which is loosely based on her hometown.

Then there is the midtempo track, "Baby, Just Give Me Some Time." Though she didn't write this one, Hope connected with it instantly – and she sings the heck out of it. "That song came across my desk and I couldn't stop playing it and singing it at the top of my lungs," she admits. "It kind of brought me to the realization [that] I wanna record the absolute best songs that I can. And if I write the best song, then I'm gonna lay it down. [But] if I find the best song, then I'm gonna lay it down [too]." "Baby" was co-written by country singer / songwriter Rebecca Lynn Howard and rocker Jack Blades, best known as the singer / bassist with Night Ranger, Rubicon and Damn Yankees. The EP is being produced by Will Evankovich, who has worked extensively with both Blades and his Damn Yankees bandmate (and Styx frontman) Tommy Shaw.

Hope's professional songwriting career started in 2009 as she began to see success writing with local Atlanta musicians and songwriters. In 2010, she was attending a festival in Swainsboro, GA, when she was asked to introduce Atlanta-based country-rock band, South 70. In a two-sentence introduction, Hope captivated an audience of hundreds and 24-hours later, she received a phone call from the band asking her if she had ever thought about performing. Within weeks, Hope officially joined South 70 and took her place on stage for the first time as a lead vocalist.

"From the moment I stepped on that stage [as a performer], I knew," Hope recalls. "I already knew I wanted to spend my life writing songs, but experiencing that interaction and energetic exchange with a live audience absolutely hooked me. I knew I had found the platform to fulfill my life's mission."

She spent most of last year on the road with the band before striking out on her own in early 2011. In addition to her EP and her work with South 70, Hope has experienced successes as they relate to her songwriting. A song she penned entitled "Terrified" was recently showcased in the ABC Family hit show, The Lying Game. Of the tune, which is sung by 16-year-old Jordyn Kane, she says, "We wrote it specifically for her. It's a love song but it's also about how that whole falling [in love] process is terrifying. It's about something new and that instant fear based reaction."

Whether writing for herself or other artists, most of Hope's material comes directly from personal experience. "I write when I don't quite know how I feel about something; basically, when there's something I need to process," she explains. "I think something about my parents splitting up when I was fifteen really shook lot of my faith in how things appear versus how they really are. That's a subject I've put pen to paper and lyrics to melody for many times over the past few years. I've been affected more by family stuff than by guy stuff, if you will."

In addition to her wholesome good looks, remarkable voice and her evolving songwriting chops, one of Hope's greatest attributes is her ability to connect with different types of people. Of her childhood in Rome, she states, "I love my hometown… Those are my roots and that's why I sound the way that I do. I understand those values, but I also get that there's a great big world out there." It's evident in speaking with this determined young artist that she has every intention of taking on that great big world she speaks of and the talent and wit to successfully carve her path in it's musical landscape.






			Taking the personal and making it universal is just one of this 24-year-old Atlanta based singer-songwriter's talents. Delivering catchy songs in a voice reminiscent of Shania Twain is another. Raised in the small town of Rome, Georgia, Hope Sonam was encouraged to explore her talents at an early age. "My family always nurtured creativity," she says. "My dad is a cartoonist and my parents sang with my brother and I all the time. As a kid, I remember laying in bed with my Gran and instead of her singing me to sleep, I would sing her to sleep." Shania was indeed one of Hope's favorites when she was growing up along with Mary-Chapin Carpenter, Bonnie Raitt and The Dixie Chicks. But her taste wasn't limited to country. Some of the other artists she loved as a kid range from Alanis Morissette to The Spin Doctors. This amalgam of influences is apparent on her self-titled EP due to be released in the fourth quarter of 2011. Hope co-wrote three of the songs herself with former Sugarland drummer / songwriter Simone Simonton. These range from the exuberant "You Love I," which wouldn't sound out of place on a Sugarland record, to the more reflective "Big Things," which is loosely based on her hometown. Then there is the midtempo track, "Baby, Just Give Me Some Time." Though she didn't write this one, Hope connected with it instantly – and she sings the heck out of it. "That song came across my desk and I couldn't stop playing it and singing it at the top of my lungs," she admits. "It kind of brought me to the realization [that] I wanna record the absolute best songs that I can. And if I write the best song, then I'm gonna lay it down. [But] if I find the best song, then I'm gonna lay it down [too]." "Baby" was co-written by country singer / songwriter Rebecca Lynn Howard and rocker Jack Blades, best known as the singer / bassist with Night Ranger, Rubicon and Damn Yankees. The EP is being produced by Will Evankovich, who has worked extensively with both Blades and his Damn Yankees bandmate (and Styx frontman) Tommy Shaw. Hope's professional songwriting career started in 2009 as she began to see success writing with local Atlanta musicians and songwriters. In 2010, she was attending a festival in Swainsboro, GA, when she was asked to introduce Atlanta-based country-rock band, South 70. In a two-sentence introduction, Hope captivated an audience of hundreds and 24-hours later, she received a phone call from the band asking her if she had ever thought about performing. Within weeks, Hope officially joined South 70 and took her place on stage for the first time as a lead vocalist. "From the moment I stepped on that stage [as a performer], I knew," Hope recalls. "I already knew I wanted to spend my life writing songs, but experiencing that interaction and energetic exchange with a live audience absolutely hooked me. I knew I had found the platform to fulfill my life's mission." She spent most of last year on the road with the band before striking out on her own in early 2011. In addition to her EP and her work with South 70, Hope has experienced successes as they relate to her songwriting. A song she penned entitled "Terrified" was recently showcased in the ABC Family hit show, The Lying Game. Of the tune, which is sung by 16-year-old Jordyn Kane, she says, "We wrote it specifically for her. It's a love song but it's also about how that whole falling [in love] process is terrifying. It's about something new and that instant fear based reaction." Whether writing for herself or other artists, most of Hope's material comes directly from personal experience. "I write when I don't quite know how I feel about something; basically, when there's something I need to process," she explains. "I think something about my parents splitting up when I was fifteen really shook lot of my faith in how things appear versus how they really are. That's a subject I've put pen to paper and lyrics to melody for many times over the past few years. I've been affected more by family stuff than by guy stuff, if you will." In addition to her wholesome good looks, remarkable voice and her evolving songwriting chops, one of Hope's greatest attributes is her ability to connect with different types of people. Of her childhood in Rome, she states, "I love my hometown… Those are my roots and that's why I sound the way that I do. I understand those values, but I also get that there's a great big world out there." It's evident in speaking with this determined young artist that she has every intention of taking on that great big world she speaks of and the talent and wit to successfully carve her path in it's musical landscape.

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