“Welcome to my world
Won’t you come on in?
Miracles, I guess
Still happen now and then
Step into my heart
Leave your cares behind
Welcome to my world
Built with you in mind…”
– John Hathcock
Welcome to Rivers & Bridges Music Studio
Owner & Songwriter – Sunette Bridges
I was born in South Africa on June 4, 1970, daughter to two amazing parents with big dreams, no money, and more love than I could ever ask for. They taught me the value of hard work, perseverance, never giving up on my dreams, having a kind and humble heart and, of course, a love of music.
As a toddler, I spent many a night falling asleep on a blanket under a table while my dad, Bles Bridges, was on stage, singing at parties, dances and weddings as lead singer and guitarist in a band. Later came piano lessons and classical ballet, until, in 1985, my dad achieved his biggest dream and was signed by EMI Records to record a solo album with one small problem… Where were the songs going to come from? In typical “Bles-fashion”, he announced that he’s got that covered and simply came home and told my Mom and I to start writing lyrics to dozens of “Deutsche Schlager” tunes the label thought would work for him. I will never forget the puzzled look on my mother’s face and her: “You want us to do what?”, reply, but 1 album became 27 and, in what is still a record setting recording career in South Africa, my Mom and I wrote the lyrics to every single one of his hit songs over the next 17 years until, sadly, he passed away on March 24, 2 000 at the age of 53.
To say I was completely devastated at the sudden loss of my dad, is an understatement, especially considering that I had just signed my own recording deal with EMI and couldn’t even contemplate how to go about it without his guidance and support, but I knew that giving up was not an option. The truth is that I was far more comfortable writing lyrics than actually recording and performing my own songs. I pushed through and ended up recording 7 solo albums over a 10-year period and actually ended up enjoying it much more than I thought I would. It was a wonderful experience filled with beautiful people and a great way to get my words heard. I wrote the lyrics to 42 of the songs on my albums, which, in turn, lead to the opportunity to write for several other artists, something I am still doing to this day. In fact, the Number 1 Hit song in South Africa from Mid-January 2023 through February, is the song “Ek Wens”, which I wrote for fellow South African artist, Ray Dylan.
In 2007 I was asked to write an Autobiography by the publishing house “Carpe Diem”. It was no secret that my personal life, by the age of 37, had been pretty messy, starting from the time when, literally overnight, I went from being just a regular teenager in a modest home, to becoming the daughter of the biggest selling artist in the country to failed marriages and bad choices that became fodder for the tabloids for over 2 decades, yet, amidst all the craziness, I kept my head above the water and mine was always a message of hope and love and the faith that I would figure it out someday and that was the message I was asked to write about. It was a daunting task because I believed, to be authentic, I needed to write every word myself, which I did and to this day, this remains the one achievement I am most proud of and experience I am most grateful for. It was truly liberating to tell my own story and not have it tainted by the opinions and words of the Pony Press.
I held true to the belief that I would find my way and my “One” and met my husband, Chris, a year after my book was published in 2008 and we have been happily married for 14 years, raising our 5 extraordinary kids and facing, head-on, many great challenges and adventures, the greatest of which was to pack up everything we owned and immigrate to the Greatest Country on Earth with our five children in 2015, where we are living our dreams, and our kids have the opportunity to chase theirs.
Today I am living my best life on our little slice of heaven in the beautiful Silk Hope in North Carolina where I am finally back to my first love in music… Writing lyrics and dreaming that someday they will find voices to carry them into the world like so many years ago when my Dad was that voice for me and my words brought hope, love, joy, and inspiration to so many people. I am privileged to have an amazing space to work in where, together with very talented composers, musicians, vocalists, and producers, and with the support of my husband, I am able to see a song come to life from the very first word to a full production and I love nothing more than to share this space with fellow musicians while learning to hone my skills and adapt to writing for the American market. I am thrilled about this brand new challenge and enjoying every step of the journey.
Sunette
“I don’t regret all those crazy passes, or the days that I went to fast and
All those nights I was lost on a country road
Sometimes lost isn’t half as bad as getting there, going way to fast
To the place you think you want to go…”
We live in a world we ourselves create
– Johann Gottfried Herder
Welcome to my world!
