Imagine coming halfway around the world to study at Limkokwing and in the process becoming an R & B outfit to be reckoned with. This group, comprising Limkokwing Borneo students from Nigeria vowed their audience at their debut performance at the Celebrities Club in Kuala Lumpur recently.

Their energetic and impressive performance in Kuala Lumpur comes after their successful launch of their debut album “Something About You” and subsequently winning the Voice Independent Music Awards (VIMA) as well as the All Asia Pacific Voice Independent Music Awards (AVIMA) this year. They were awarded the FLAVA Award at the AVIMA for Best African Act in Asia and the Silver Award for Best Hip Hop Song at the VIMA. Their hit single ‘Jamalo’ or ‘Let’s Go’ also bagged the Best Dance Song award at the African Entertainment Awards (AEA).

Some may consider it strange that they would begin their musical career in a place so far away from their homeland, but to the three members, namely Ammy P (Paschal Ani), Gamerholic (Peter Corton) and Crystle Gee, it was in Kuching where their talents were discovered and unleashed. 

The group’s humble beginnings actually started ‘behind the closet of my room’ as stated by Ammy P, who coincidentally is also one of the key persons who brought the group together. He had first heard of Gamerholic when he listened to a self-made single of his which was being circulated in their college and thought that it would be interesting to get together and create some tunes together as they both shared a similar interest in music.

The rest was history as they never looked back since.

The both of them, together with the third member Crystle Gee, formed what is now known as Sound Circus. After experimenting to see what roles they should each play in the group, it was finally decided that both Gamerholic and Crystle Gee would take on the roles as rappers whereas Ammy P would be the main vocalist of the group. However, they were not just mere voice talents, they were true musicians in their own right as the three of them all wrote their music together.

They initially began producing miniature albums together with Gagsman Izomas (Ogaga) who handled the music productions for the group and finally performed in public in 2009.  They began creating a following for themselves as they began performing more gigs around the campus and Kuching, before they decided to try producing an album on a bigger scale.

It was when they met with Chris Servey, a Kuching based music producer from the United Kingdom that they put their plans into action and their album ‘Something About You’ was finally released in 2009.

It was no doubt that the album was a success and awards were heaped upon them.

However, it wasn’t the awards that brought tears of joy to their eyes but the fact that they had managed to make a name for themselves in a market that was so seemingly hard to break through. Their years of hard work and their perfect cooperation with one another had brought them this far, and there was only one direction ahead of them; the road to greater success.

For Gamerholic, the success that Sound Circus had achieved in the two years that they have been together is nothing but sweet, especially when he thinks back to the days when he first realized that music was the path in his life.

‘My dad had always thought that I shouldn’t be dabbling in music and doing something more ‘productive’ than that, but I always knew that music was my thing,’ he said. 

‘As a matter of fact, he had tried to put a stop to my music making, but when I left home to come here to further my studies, it was like I was given a new life, my once shattered dreams came back to me. I could experiment with music without having to worry about my dad coming at me. However, I do understand what he means when he says that he wants me to have a solid education, so I am not giving that up at all. I will get my degree, but I will also work hard at proving to him that I can do it without having to give up music.’

‘Dream come true is what I would call it,’ says Ammy P, who first started singing as a part-time backup singer back in Nigeria. ‘I thought that I would always have to sing backup, and really didn’t know how to start on my musical career as I was never given the right exposure or opportunity back then. It was here in Kuching that my singing career really kicked off, and I’m grateful to my group members for forming Sound Circus with me, as without them, I’d probably still be in my room, creating demos behind my cupboard,’ he added. 

‘Too bad Crystle Gee’s back in Nigeria, otherwise he would be able to share this moment with us. But we’re sure that he’s jumping up and down in an excited frenzy Nigeria!’

‘We’re extremely grateful to our fans as well, as without their continuous support, we wouldn’t be here. We wouldn’t be motivated to create more music that they would appreciate as well, as there can be no dream without someone to stand behind you and cheer you on. It’s the belief that they have in us that sparks us to want to reach higher and further,’ said the duo. 

The sky is the limit for Sound Circus as they continue to experiment with new projects such as making music videos and create more music, infusing different elements into their creations. They are also concentrating on finishing their full digital album, which they hope will fully break them in the local music scene.

Another item on their agenda is to have more collaborations with local acts as they see the exchange of ideas between them and the local artistes to be highly valuable for the development of their music. One of the issues that they have noticed about the local music scene is that there are so many talented musicians producing their music but little attention is given to their efforts.

‘There is really so much potential out there, especially the local acts and indie bands. In fact, we have successfully worked together with Sharon Lugun on her single ‘No Intentions’, which is currently catching the attention of the public, which is what we want to achieve for both the aspiring local acts and Sound Circus,’ explained Ammy P.

‘We feel that all these artistes need is a platform to showcase their talent and we hope that by having collaborations with these artistes, we will be able to catch the attention of the masses.’

This was also one of the reasons why the members of Sound Circus chose to study at Limkokwing Borneo, as they were amazed with the amount of creative independence given to the students.

‘We first heard of Limkokwing Borneo from our friends and were initially skeptical when they told us that the management actually encouraged students to bring forward their ideas and were supportive of student activities. Then we read about all the events that they held for the students and the awards that they have received in the creative arts area and we were sold,’ said Gamerholic.

‘The school has been nothing but supportive of us with our music, but they are also very strict with us when it comes to academic performance. Which is great, because we are kept well grounded while being set free to explore our creativity and express ourselves. One thing I can assure you is that my dad is very happy with me now!’ he quipped.

The group is also looking into more public performances such as gigs, concerts and going on radio programmes and is eager to participate in events for charity and other non-governmental organizations as they look at it as a way to contribute back to the society that has shown so much support for them.

‘As of now, we are not under any record labels and are currently operating independently as Sound Circus Entertainment, so we are reaching out to our fans through public performances and the Internet. We are in the final stages of developing our website, and we have Facebook accounts, Sound Circus and Sound Circus Entertainment Lovers And Friends. Fans can also listen to our demos on our MySpace account.’