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Things are looking up for actress and musician Sydney Agudong, who nearly gave up on her dreams of a life in Tinseltown before she decided to flip the script.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n Like Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz<\/em>, Sydney Agudong often experiences those visceral \u201cToto, we\u2019re not in Kansas anymore\u201d moments. Whether she\u2019s on the set of a Netflix show or in the studio recording her debut album, that rush of emotion can hit her at any given time to remind her just how far she\u2019s come from her quaint island home.<\/p>\n Having dreamt about Hollywood\u2019s glitz and glamor for as long as she can remember, the Kaua\u2018i native is no stranger to the stage. Her first experience under the dazzling lights came courtesy of a local healthy baby contest (she got second place). Later, she entered the world of pageantry, theater (she was in productions of Peter Pan<\/em>, Mulan<\/em> and Shrek<\/em>, to name a few) and other avenues that prepared her for stardom.<\/p>\n When it came to her music, though, Agudong kept those cards close to her heart. Until one day, she got into a tiff with her mom, Karen, and penned an entire song during math class as a way to relinquish her remorse. The angsty, pencil-written lyrics became her slightly unofficial debut single, which amounted to the highest regard the Garden Island can offer: air time on KONG Radio.<\/p>\n Sydney Agudong discovered her love for the spotlight by performing in local pageants and theater performances, and was always supported by family members, including mom Karen (pictured at left). PHOTO COURTESY SYDNEY AGUDONG<\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n \u201cIt was called I\u2019m So Sorry<\/em>,\u201d the now 21-year-old says with a sheepish laugh. \u201cBandwagon Studios had helped me produce it. That was the first time that I thought, \u2018Wow, this is possible.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n Another first Agudong fondly looks back on is the epiphany that she wanted to be on television, too.<\/p>\n \u201cI had the typical moment when you\u2019re with your mom and you\u2019re like, \u2018I want to be up there,\u2019 but the funny thing was, I wanted to be on TV to do the game shows,\u201d she says, laughing. \u201cI wanted to do Wipeout<\/em> because I was so into gymnastics at the time that I didn\u2019t understand why people couldn\u2019t get through the courses.\u201d<\/p>\n As a member of Gen Z, Agudong hints that her childhood somewhat reflected that of Hannah Montana<\/em>, where she was a part-time regular teen, playing sports and hanging out with friends, and part-time aspiring star. She and younger sister Sienna (featured in MidWeek<\/em>\u2019s Oct. 28, 2020, issue for her own accomplishments) would frequently fly to LA, hoping the return trip would be accompanied with good news. But, as a lot of household-name celebrities would admit, you get a whole lot of nos before you get your first yes.<\/p>\n Sydney Agudong discovered her love for the spotlight by performing in local pageants and theater performances. PHOTO COURTESY SYDNEY AGUDONG<\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n \u201cThere was the stress of trying to be good at everything all at once,\u201d the Island School graduate recalls. \u201cWhen you travel back and forth for auditions, it\u2019s such a sacrifice because you\u2019re away from family and friends and school, and you\u2019re putting it all on the line. I think I got to a point where I was getting so many nos that I wasn\u2019t sure if I was doing it right or even enjoyed it anymore.<\/p>\n \u201cI profusely always have to be so grateful for my parents who did this for us because it was such a sacrifice in so many ways \u2014 financially, emotionally and physically. Sometimes, they could afford for us to go up to LA for a month or two at a time, which was a big chunk of time, but it was helpful because the longer you\u2019re there, the more chances you have for auditions and booking something,\u201d Agudong says, adding that she was trying out for everything from commercials to Disney and Nickelodeon series. \u201cSometimes, we could only afford the time, energy and finances for a week. Whenever we got that chance to make it happen, we would.\u201d<\/p>\n As if one\u2019s teenage years aren\u2019t already turbulent times, Agudong felt nothing but defeated, discouraged and disappointed, and so she put her Hollywood dreams on the back burner and had her heart set on going to college in Colorado instead. But with a sudden burst of optimism, Agudong decided to give it one more try, packed her suitcases and headed straight for Tinseltown. With that spark in her back pocket, she began booking roles. She starred in a low-budget film called West Michigan<\/em>, which is about a 17-year-old girl who struggles to find her place in the world.<\/p>\n Sydney Agudong discovered her love for the spotlight by performing in local pageants and theater performances. PHOTO COURTESY SYDNEY AGUDONG<\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n \u201cI was excited because I got to play somebody who was kind of mean,\u201d Agudong says. \u201cIt was fun to experiment and be free and go outside of my comfort zone.<\/p>\n \u201c(The experience) was so cool. I mean, it was low budget, so filming was quicker and there were some adjustments to it, but I don\u2019t think that takes away from the experience at perience at all. There\u2019s so much to learn when you\u2019re on set, doing it instead of hearing about it. It was really cool because I still feel connected to everybody even though we haven\u2019t spoken in a little while. We created a family.\u201d<\/p>\n That \u2018ohana mindset follows Agudong wherever she goes, a nod to the close-knit community she was raised in. She cultivated a similar feeling on the set of Netflix\u2019s On My Block<\/em>, her first TV show appearance. It\u2019s a far cry from an obstacle course game show like Wipeout<\/em>, but that didn\u2019t take away from the fun of filming it.<\/p>\n With exciting film projects coming up, Sydney Agudong looks forward to the day when she can write and direct one of her own. \u201cI got to play Jamal\u2019s (Brett Gray) girlfriend and date to prom,\u201d she says. \u201cI was extremely grateful and lucky to have the cast and crew that I had because they were already family and had been there for seasons before. It was their last season, so they just wanted to have fun. They were so welcoming, which I know is not always the case on a set.\u201d<\/p>\n Coming up, Agudong stars in a yet-to-be-released interactive web series called Find Millie Martin<\/em>, where she plays a social media influencer whose friend goes missing. Meanwhile, production is currently underway for At Her Feet<\/em>, a project she can\u2019t spill too much information about, but says it\u2019s filming on the Big Island and includes \u201cknown Hawaiian actors that will be really fun to shoot with.\u201d As far as her dream role goes, Agudong would love to work with Marvel or DC, but more than that, hopes to compose her own script, adding that it would be a coming-of-age story.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m not really sure what my purpose is as far as (writing my own movie) goes, but right now I feel the urge and calling to speak and bring to the surface mental health and the normalcy of how things can appear when someone is going through something that you have no idea about because you can\u2019t see it,\u201d she explains. \u201cHopefully people can either relate to it and feel better or learn something that they didn\u2019t know before.\u201d<\/p>\n Sydney Agudong continues to explore her early 20s in the heart of Hollywood. PHOTO COURTESY NICHOLAS <\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n Outside of showbiz, Agudong plays another character: Jayne Doe, an alter ego of sorts and the moniker in which she released music under.<\/p>\n \u201cThe meaning of \u2018Jane Doe\u2019 is an unidentified female, but in general, I think my biggest point was that I wanted to make sure that people knew we\u2019re one of the same,\u201d she says. \u201cThe things that I\u2019m going through are things that everybody is going through and vice versa. It\u2019s not to say that it devalues any sort of feelings but it\u2019s more of a way, like, I\u2019m unidentified because I don\u2019t know who I am yet \u2014 none of us do \u2014 and that\u2019s the whole point.<\/p>\n \u201cI was growing up with that whole perfectionist side; I wanted to be good at everything and I wanted to know everything and answer the questions I had about everything. That was the biggest thing about my mental health, too. It came crashing down when I realized that I actually don\u2019t know anything. There should be a comfort to that.<\/p>\n \u201cI wrote something down about the whole point of Jayne and the music: \u2018I\u2019m constantly and comfortably sitting in the middle of an identity crisis.\u2019 That\u2019s what I feel like I go through at any point in the day. I don\u2019t know what I\u2019m going to do next \u2014 and that\u2019s OK, that\u2019s the point of it and that\u2019s why a lot of my music is going to resonate with real life.\u201d<\/p>\n So far, Agudong has recorded and released Welcome To Hollywood<\/em>, a song that depicts her conflicting relationship with the place that she always yearned for.<\/p>\n \u201cEven though it\u2019s saying \u2018welcome to Hollywood\u2019, there\u2019s a weird mix of feelings you tend to feel in the song,\u201d she elaborates. \u201cThere\u2019s a melancholiness to it, there\u2019s a heartbeat, there\u2019s a rush, there\u2019s energy, there\u2019s this lackadaisicalness to it.<\/p>\n I was going through a lot of mental health struggles during that time when I moved out to LA. I had culture shock. I think that people don\u2019t realize and take into account that \u2026 it\u2019s a very vulnerable thing to try and chase your dreams \u2014 to put yourself out there, to get your heartbroken over something that you want so badly.\u201d<\/p>\n Agudong teases that the album will release before the end of the year. Till then, she\u2019ll be working hard and having fun while her career continues to escalate. She attributes her down-to-earth outlook on life to her local-style upbringing.<\/p>\n \u201cGrowing up in Hawai\u2018i gave me and my sister humble beginnings and helped us stay grounded,\u201d she says. \u201cWe were very accustomed to different cultures and backgrounds, which gave us a really nice foundation for our own morals and the way we go about things now.\u201d<\/p>\n Unlike Dorothy, it takes Agudong a little more than just three ruby-red heel clicks to go back to home. But she\u2019s comforted knowing that it\u2019s only a six-hour flight away \u2014 and forever in her heart.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Things are looking up for actress and musician Sydney Agudong, who nearly gave up on her dreams of a life..<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":1578,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1571","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cover-story"],"yoast_head":"\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/hawaii.carpentermediagroup.com\/midweekhawaii\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/photo-mar-01-21-19-37.jpg\")
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