Sophie Lloyd (born October 22nd 1995) is one of the most prolific guitarists on the world wide web, a trailblazer who is redefining the concept of a “bedroom” guitarist. A talented composer and accomplished musician, Sophie graduated from the prestigious BIMM in 2018 with a First Class Honours BMus in Popular Music Performance, honing and refining a talent she has nurtured since childhood.
Since then, she has amassed the kind of following that even the guitar gods she grew up idolising would be envious of, with a reach surpassing 2.5 million followers across her social channels, built through a steady stream of sharing her talent via guitar “shredleys”, covers and her own original material.
“I started playing guitar when I was around 10 years old after listening to Led Zeppelin in the car with my dad. Because I was a bit of an outcast, I had a lot of time to practise and this gave me an escape from reality, helped me overcome my anxieties and really gave me a sense of fulfilment.”
While her classmates spent their spare time socialising and partying, Sophie would come home every day after school to spend 5 hours practicing on her Yamaha Pacifica, mastering her craft until bedtime.
With roots in classic metal, bands like Iron Maiden, Black Label Society and Pantera have been some of the biggest influences on her lead playing style. She has blended this heavy and technical style with the expression and feeling of blues guitarists such as Rory Gallagher and Joe Bonnamassa. Her rhythm playing is greatly inspired by punk bands such as the Offspring and Misfits. Having learned to play a variety of different genres which are noticeable in her sound, including elements of Jazz, Country and Gospel, Sophie has developed her own unique and creative style of playing and composing.
In search of a platform and community where she could share her material and meet other like-minded musicians, Sophie took to YouTube, enabling her to start building an audience of both fans and contemporaries. 100+ Million views later, it’s safe to say that turned out to be a very good decision.
“I've gone on to meet so many amazing people and gone on to do things I only dreamed of. The fact that this is my career is still mind blowing to me.”
In addition to her own content, Sophie’s talent and popularity has led to collaborations with brands such as Amazon Prime, Hard Rock Café, LiveNation and Harley Davidson, her own Guitar course on Truefire and a stunning performance at Paris Fashion Week for Redemption Brand Clothing.
Most recently, Sophie could be seen shredding on stage as guitarist for multi-platinum recording artist Machine Gun Kelly on his recent Mainstream Sellout World Tour, which included sold out shows at legendary venues such Madison Square Garden in New York and Wembley Arena in London.
At 27 Years Old, Sophie Lloyd is just getting started, with work on her debut solo album in progress and a few others items to tick off her bucket list.