Interview: How Siddharth Slathia is making his Passion for Singing succeed using YouTube – a Rockstar in Making!

Few months back I was searching for ‘Abhi mujh mein kahin song from Agneepath movie on YouTube’ and I accidentally landed up on a video uploaded by Siddharth Slathia. Impressed by his singing skills I joined his Facebook page which showcased amazing engagement practice by this young 21 year old chap. Siddarth ensures he responds personally to all the criticism and appreciation he received on the YouTube comments section, he owns one of the popular YouTube Channels:

1. Youtube.com/ratelikesubscribe with 20 Million views and 1,75,000+ subscribers

Quick introduction of Siddharth Slathia: 

Siddharth Slathia (born 25 July 1991 in Jammu, India) is an aspiring singer from India. He is the son of Mr Kullratan Singh (Official at Jammu & Kashmir Bank) and Mrs Madhu Lata (Teacher in State Govt.).

Siddharth grew up in jammu and went to J.K Public School. At the age of 10, he took interest in singing and gave auditions for the school annual day. His teacher selected him and was very impres…sed by his voice quality and provided him good platforms to showcase his talent. Siddharth sang in All India Radio and the local channels of Jammu, and also took part in many State level and National level competitions.

After his +2, Siddharth came to the city of Sufi & Qawwals – Jaipur to study Engineering. His college never supported his singing but his friends and fellow-collegians appreciated his singing and encouraged him to pursue a singing career.Siddharth left the college and started learning Hindustani Classical from Pt. Kundan Mal Ji.

Siddharth is now studying Bachelor of Music from Jammu University and learning Hindustani Classical from Pt. Bholanath Misra Ji (from Benaras Gharana).

Here is an email interview of the Jammu based young & energetic singer: 

What inspired you to post your first video on YouTube? When was it?

It is the easiest platform (although the most competitive one) to showcase your talent. I uploaded first in 2009.

How many videos have you posted till date? You own two YouTube channel – whats’s the purpose of each?

I don’t know the exact number but more than 100 for sure. One is my official channel, the second one is a backup channel because I upload a lot of covers and a lot of times, videos get blocked by the copyright owners. So just to be on the safe side, I have kept a backup channel.

How many opportunities did you get from YouTube? Any play back singing? Invitation to concerts? Invitation for teaching etc? Please share your experience in detail with us.

I have had a lot of requests for collaborations from other artists across the world. My private album which is due to be released this year in India, Pakistan and the UK…I got this after the UK-based producers of Pakistani origin saw my video on YouTube. I have had a lot of invitations for live shows. Teaching..haha, I’m not a teacher. Yes, I have uploaded a couple of vocal tutorials on YouTube but that’s not to become a teacher. That was because I receive requests from fans on YouTube and facebook to give them tips about how to sing…so I thought I’ll upload some tutorials for the audience.

What other Social Media channels do you use apart from YouTube? I see your Facebook page has about 30,000+ fans – are they organic or have you spent on Facebook Ads?

All the fans on my Facebook page are organic. No money spent on Facebook ads. These are fans that come to my page after watching my videos on YouTube. Most of my videos have my Facebook page link in the video itself.

I love the way you engage with Fans on Facebook and YouTube comments – You respond to every comment and feedback – is that very important part of your follower base?

It is very important to form a bond…a connect with your fans. It is not just about putting out your talent there. It is also about knowing what exactly your fans want from you. Last year, I started taking song requests from fans. I was uploading about 2-3 videos a day singing songs that my fans were requesting.

 Who takes care of your technical needs? I observed your YouTube channels are well customized, videos are technically advanced.

My brother Raj.

What equipment does a Singer/Artist require to record and post videos on YouTube? Please share it in detail (this will help many) 

If singing is just a hobby, all you need is a good quality camera..most smart phones have this. If you sing well, you don’t even need a music instrument to accompany your vocals. However, if you can play guitar, you don’t even need a mic. But if you want to pursue music professionally and want to upload high quality audio, you need a condenser microphone, a soundcard, a pop filter, a pc and a recording software.

What are your future plans?

My future plan is to do playback singing in Bollywood and also become a pop star in India. I want to bring back the era when people used to be crazy about pop albums like Sonu Nigam’s Deewana. In the nearer future, I have many things lined up. I am recreating old classics like “Ajeeb Daastan Hai Yeh” and “Abhi Naa Jao Chorh Kar” with Saregama Records. I am also going to be featured on MTunes HD channel within a month or so. Apart from that, my private album will be releasing in India, Pakistan and the UK by the end of this year.

Did Social Media change your life?

A. Yes, of course. It has been a very difficult journey but yes, it has given me great opportunities. It wasn’t easy though. I didn’t become what I am over night. I have been struggling since 2009.

Any advice for the young talented individuals like you with reference to how can they become Virtual World Popular? 

I can certainly share something with other aspiring singers. Bring originality to your songs, be versatile, be quick enough to get first-mover advantage by uploading covers of the latest songs before anyone else on the internet, upload songs in high quality, engage with your audience effectively…check your comments regularly and reply to people.

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Story of Siddharth Slathia is for sure going to inspire many of us! I like the way he sings and the humbleness he owns. However, here are some social media marketing lessons that one needs to learn from this young chap:

•  Facebook Community will organically grow if you owe some fantastic content on publishing platforms such as slideshare, YouTube or blog.
• Outsource technical work if you are not good at it, but definitely be technically sound to showcase seriousness of your Social Media Presence. Siddharth’s video has a like button / link of the page integrated with the video or is displayed at the end of the video.
• Be the first to do it or talk about it! Like how Siddarth ensures to add a unplugged cover of the most popular songs of Bollywood.
• Respect the feedback received and acknowledge them with a Thank You note or your feedback to the same.
• Add the personal touch, record a video, tell the story, share the making of the video etc. to create excitement!

Thank You Siddharth for some fantastic job out there!

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