In addition to her passion for music, the socially conscious artist works alongside nonprofits such as Soi Dogs and Humane Society of the United States to protect animal rights, fostering and the environment. Milow the Girl says, “I have been blessed to be surrounded by animals all my life. I find it so important to live in harmony with nature; it should be our primary concern to live and respect all that surrounds us. If each of us thought about the consequences of our actions and took the time to change one little thing…what a difference this would make.”
We recently had the opportunity to catch up with her in an interview :
US Mag : Please introduce yourself to the readers and Who or what inspired you to get into this profession?
Sylvia G : As a teenager I used to listen to the Eurythmics and Annie Lennox’s beautiful voice but my interest in music came much later with a DJ friend in London U.K. and later in Paris. It sounds weird to say that, especially when singing and fame is the dream of so many but I never thought I would become a singer. It’s still hard for me to believe today. I had no musical background and I was quite shy.
US Mag : We been hearing a lot about you, and your film” Days of Power “, can you tell us a bit about the film?
Sylvia G : It’s a movie about the horror of puppy mills. We hope to raise awareness about what puppy mills are, these mass production farms are still very active in some US States; Arkansas, Georgia, Indiana, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, and Pennsylvania being some of those States that breed dogs in horrific conditions with no care for the animal. The only goal being to maximize profit with the dogs while the wellbeing of the animal is irrelevant. The dogs live all their lives in small wired cages with almost no food, no protection from the weather, they never get out. They never touch the grass, they receive no medical care, when they are sick, they are killed. The pups are then sold very cheap to pet stores that are then sold to you. You can go to
www.puppymills.org to find out more about this.
US Mag : If you could do something for animals, what it would be?
Sylvia G : OMG there is so much to do; Stop animal cruelty like the trade of dog meat in Asia, because yes …some people eat dog meat. There is an wonderful nonprofit called Soi Dogs that does an amazing job helping this cause. They are based in Thailand. I would forbid puppy mills and punish the people behind them.
We also have to, now more than ever, protect our wildlife against poaching. Just to give you an example Rhinos are being killed for their horns, the demand for rhino horns comes mainly from Asian countries. They are used as a status symbol to display success and wealth. Some people will pay up to $400,000 for a horn! The animal will be left to die with it’s horn cut off. We need tougher laws to fight for the protection of our marine wildlife to stop the massacres of whales and dolphins, it is very sad that Whaling nations just blocked the south Atlantic sanctuary plan for Whales. Plastic bags are also a major problem. They are all over the planet and I do not think that there is one place on earth we’re you won’t find a plastic bag .The oceans are the largest ecosystems on Earth and generate half of the oxygen you and I breathe what will happen if our oceans or our forests die? I will stop here because I could go on and on…
US Mag : What projects do you have coming up?
Sylvia G : A few concerts in November as we prepare for the Dreams tour, the release of my children’s book Lester’ s Planet and in February the release of the movie “Days of Power” in the US .
US Mag : What has been one of the most exciting achievements of your career so far?
Sylvia G : The most exciting achievements? To still believe 🙂 I doubt a lot and there are days where I doubt even more. It’s all a question of certainty. I Thank God to have given me the possibility to do what I am doing, my music, the release of my book for children “Lester’s Planet”, having my music featured in the movie “Days of Power” and raising awareness against animal cruelty .
US Mag : Please tell our readers about your passion for animals ?
Sylvia G : My passion for animals is my life. I have been so lucky that my parents, when I was a kid understood this passion of mine:) and for a few months when I was about 4 years old I had big cats, 2 chimpanzees and some other exotic animals. We always had dogs and I guess as I grew up I caught the virus 🙂 I can’t imagine my life without animals. I mean it is something so precious and I cannot understand how anyone can torture a dog, a cat or any other animal. Some people have no affinities with animals that’s fine What is not okay is cruelty.
US Mag : What motivates you to do your best work as an animal advocate ?
Sylvia G : My motivation? Animals have feelings and emotions, it is incredible to me that some people still debate whether animals can feel. Wild animals like elephants, whales, wolves all have such a vast range of feelings and the relationship between adults and their babies is amazing. Empathy is not only shown by humans, many animals express empathy for each other. I have always been a dog person, the only thing they cannot do is talk ….I mean with words that we can understand …but they share and show so many emotions, it is for me something beautiful and peaceful . I am also very attached to free-living animals, wild life. I have often travelled to Africa and I can only say that we need to cherish and protect them before it’s too late.
US Mag : What are your future plans to singing ? Your vision for the coming years.
Sylvia G : I don’t like to plan so much but I would love to tour the US and Europe and through my music I wish to raise awareness on the subjects close to my heart.
US Mag : Everybody needs time out. What do you do in your free time?
Sylvia G : I switch off my phone & my computer. I enjoy doing sport it’s always been my remedy against stress. Swimming, running, walking with my dogs, yoga & cardio. I am starting kick boxing again and traveling. I enjoy traveling. In some of the places I have been like Myanmar, Vietnam, Shri Lanka or Peru, people have so little but they have smiles on their faces and yes …one can survive without wifi 🙂 It just puts things back into perspective don’t you think?
US Mag : What’s the best way to follow you for updates about you and “Days of Power ” ?
Sylvia G : On my website www.milowthegirl.com
On the film’s website www.daysofpower.com
Or on social media at @daysofpower
Facebook – @daysofpower