Emma is one of the newest members of our Community team, she is from Australia & has lived in Denmark, Mexico & for the past few years, Germany! Meet her below & say hi in the comments!

Hi there! Thanks for the interview- can you say “hi” to everyone in your native language?

Hi!

You are from the land down under, right? How did you end up in Berlin?

Pretty randomly. I hopped on a train a few years ago and haven’t looked back!

How did you get introduced to SoundCloud?

A couple of years ago a friend sent me the link to his track on the ‘Cloud, and it really struck a chord with me when I noticed I could find track IDs through the timed comments. It’s such a relief to bury those: “you know that song, it’s like ‘daaa baa baa’, with drums?” conversations.

What is your favorite sound?

The opening of a can. It’s audible refreshment.

and Jai Paul is always nice to listen to.

What sound do you hate?

Chewing. I even hate listening to myself chew, which is pretty inconvenient.

If you had 3 words to describe yourself, what would they be?

Where’s my phone?

What’s your favorite German word?

Begeistert. It means ‘excited’, but I think it sounds so much more exciting than ‘excited’.

How is it working at such an International and diverse office?

It’s great! Being surrounded by so many diverse skills sets is really inspiring, and a good reminder of how diverse SoundCloud’s users are. Plus it’s the perfect place to carry out some in-depth cultural studies, like whether or not the mint flavour of American Girl Scout Cookies is really that much better than the coconut…

Why do you think someone should apply to SoundCloud?

Because we get to eat excellent pizza and play ping pong in the basement! Not to mention the opportunity to help shape the future of sound… that’s pretty cool, right?

What do you like most about Berlin?

There’s a guy who often walks around my neighbourhood dressed as a medieval knight and no one bats an eyelid. I love that.

What are your favorite sounds on the cloud?

Damn, that’s like choosing my favourite jelly belly flavour. There are way. too. many. Right now I’m listening to a lot of Alle Farben mixes, but there will always be a special place in my heart for cringey Italo Disco. The kitchen table will hate me forever, but it was hands-down my musical highlight of 2011.

Thanks for the great interview Emma! You can find her on the web below:

Twitter: @ammerugg
Soundcloud: http://soundcloud.com/emmarugger

Today help me welcome to the team in Berlin, Sebastian Razola!

Hi there! Thanks for the interview- can you tell us how to say “hi” in your native language?

Sure thing! Hej.

I see from your “hello” that you are from Sweden! So are a lot of people that work at SoundCloud. I heard you were at the first SoundCloud opening party – how was that? And how were you introduced to SoundCloud?

Yep, correct. A friend of mine, now colleague, was invited and asked if I wanted to join. The party was on the rooftop terrace of the old office and the weather was spectacular. Let’s just say it was a pretty good first visit to Berlin.

You are fairly new to Berlin but I see that you are pretty active on Foursquare checking out new places all the time, what do you love most about Berlin so far?

I love exploring food scenes so it’s really exciting to be in a new city and to discover new places every week. I’m also starting to realize that spring comes early here compared to Stockholm. WIN!

Back to SoundCloud, what is your role?

In a tweet: I’m a Product Manager mainly looking after and thinking about our App Gallery and Developer Pages.

What is your favorite sound?

Nothing beats a good laugh. It’s so insanely contagious.

What sound do you hate?

Any noise when I’m trying to sleep.

What’s your favorite word to say? 

Tricky one. I really don’t know. But, if I was from California I’m pretty sure my answer would be ‘awesome’.

Rad! How is it working at such an International and diverse office?

It’s great. But, to be honest I don’t think about it too much. For me it’s as a company with many smart, nerdy and awesome people. Everyone just happen to come from all over the world.

If you could say that you are passionate about anything, what would it be?

Beautiful and usable products and nice weather.

Why do you think someone should apply to SoundCloud?

For me three big factors was:

• Having an impact. I wanted to be a part of something that affect people’s everyday life.
• I believe in what we’re doing. I think sound is such a big part of our lives.
• I wanted to work with really smart people.

If that makes you tick, APPLY!

What are your favorite sounds on the cloud?

Here are some recent favorites:

Great! Can you let us know where to find you online?

Twitter:  @razola
Soundcloud: razola

Sridhar joined the team a few months ago but today we finally want to properly introduce you to him! Listen to his audio message below and learn more about him below!

Hi there! Thanks for the interview- can you say “hi” to everyone in your native language?

Hey Natalie – sure, Namaskaram! Vanakkam! (That actually means ‘welcome’ but there isn’t a distinct hello in my native language). Guess we’re more friendly that way.

How many languages do you speak?

I speak Tamil, Hindi and maybe a little English, and can understand a few more native languages. Hope to add German to my arsenal soon. Ich verstehe nur ein bisschen Deutsch.

How did you get introduced to SoundCloud?

On a cold, grim wintry moonlit night many many years back, I was looking for a platform to host my music on, a platform that didn’t suck. Clicking on a search result on the dreary display on my desktop computer dragged me onto some page that had SoundCloud written on it.

It was love at first sight.

What is your role at SoundCloud?

I’m a Product Marketer (official: Associate Product Marketing Manager), which effectively means that I work closely with technology, product & marketing teams to ensure that millions and millions more get introduced to and love SoundCloud, and that we’re building stuff that users LOVE. Marrying gut-instinct and your understanding of the web, psychology, usability design and validating it with real behavioural insights from the millions using your platform is one of the most rewarding experiences ever.

What is your favorite sound?

The sound of the beach – waves, wind, surf. Nuff’ said :)

What sound do you hate?

The sound of fingers tapping softly on a keyboard can be most pleasant, but the sound of someone angrily bashing on a keyboard drives me nuts.

If you had 3 words to describe yourself, what would they be?

Wah-wah. Wakachaka. Boom.

How is it working at such an International and diverse office?

There’s a vibe in the air that’s hard to describe. Everyone’s senses are attuned to this ‘vibe’, and it’s fascinating to hear such varied, diverse stories from all the folks here, who are all passionate about something or the other, yet find commmon ground within sound and music. Did I mention the people are super smart? Inspiring.

When you are not working, what do you love to do? What are you passionate about?

Writing and making music is a big part of my offline routine and I produce bands/artists when I can. I like to collaborate musically, and it’s good to see so many quality musicians in town! And then, travels, new people, new places, new environments. I can never get bored of that stuff (who does?)

Did you relocate? How was that?

It was initially overwhelming moving halfway across the world, but thanks to the lovely people at SoundCloud (and a special shoutout to Sylvia and Erik), life was much easier during and after the move. The only difficult part was coping with minus 18 degrees celsius in January, which is about 50 degrees colder than what it is in Singapore. Insane.

However, can’t wait for spring and eventually summer – people are already getting out on the streets and it’s only early spring ;)

Why should someone apply to SoundCloud?

A culture of innovation + music/sound lovers + amazing, smart people + weekly beer o’ clocks, parties + shhh…. (I could tell you but I’d have to hire you.)

What do you like most about Berlin?

Berlin is a city of unique experiences and just when I’d think I’ve seen it all, she’d hit me with something absolutely new. (The only thing I miss about this place is the beach)

What are your favorite sounds on the cloud?

I’m predisposed to choose music and something I’m really digging atm is this acoustic version of a Porcupine Tree classic by one of my favourite musicians, Steven Wilson. It’s a song about trains – how amazing?

Here’s a breathtaking, live version of an ambient track by Devin Townsend. Talent is him.

Another –> Foo Fighters! They’ve been in the news a lot, with the grammy etc. but I think this album rocks real hard and deserves the recognition.

Cool! Thanks for the great interview! Where can we find you on the web?

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/sridharsmusic
SoundCloud: http://www.soundcloud.com/sridharsmusic
Blog: http://sridharsmusic.com/blog