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ETANA
Photo by
Sista Irie
Arguably the most
prolific female reggae vocalist
in the present day, reggae
singer/ songwriter Etana has
struck a chord with the masses,
and like any beautiful melody,
she is winning the hearts of the
people one song at a time.
Spirited in her
approach to
communicate unfitting and
inspirational messages to the
youth, she has been described by
critics as the truth, one who
will bring about real change
with her powerful and
captivating voice that at times
seem flawlessly pure. Rebellious
in her approach to denote
systematic oppression against
all races, Etana takes pride in
being an artist. She feels
strongly that her responsibility
as a recording artist is to
express positive vibrations in
her music, and from this she
will graceful admit to staying
the course.
Born Shauna
McKenzie, Etana spent her
youthful days playing in the
hill side community of August
Town situated in the South
Eastern side of Jamaica. The
only daughter of a fairly large
family of boys she was as
curious then as she is
determined now, doing the
mischievous things most children
tend to do at an early age. She
attended school in Jamaica until
1992, when she migrated to the
U.S to start a new life in the
sunshine state of Miami,
Florida. Etana was a budding
achiever; she finished grade
school and eventually went off
to college the year after with
plans of becoming a Registered
Nurse.
During her
studies at Broward Community
College, Etana became extremely
passionate about music. She was
consumed with the joy of
creating her own mix of the
different genres she would
attentively listen to in her
earlier years. A hardened fan of
Reggae, Pop, Hip Hop and Jazz
musicians, she found inspiration
in Whitney Houston, Lauryn Hill,
Jill Scott, Sizzla Kalonji,
Marcia Griffiths and the legend
Bob Marley, all of who
eventually gave the then
academic youth the will to
explore a new and potentially
more suited career in Music.
In 2000 after
making a tough decision to
prematurely exit college, Etana
attempted a shot at stardom when
she joined a girl group by the
name "GIFT" which was being
courted by Universal Records.
Sexy, reviling and conforming to
the industry stereo type of how
a woman should dress, Etana fell
victim to her dreams of becoming
a mainstream star. It wasn't her
ideal fit, but she conformed to
the record labels requests and
gave in to her groups glamorous
appeal, until one day while on a
video shoot for their lead
single, she could bear it no
more. She walked away from the
spotlights and returned to her
native place of birth, Kingston,
Jamaica. Here she started fresh
as an entrepreneur looking to
grab a piece of the Cyber Market
with an Internet Cafe.
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Down but not out,
Etana still wanted to do music,
but only in her own way. She
wanted to send out a meaningful
message, and portray a more
eloquent look. Etana’s pivotal
opportunity came in 2005, when a
friend brought her to the Fifth
Element Company, which was, at
the time, prospering from the
strength of Richie Spice’s
current popularity. Spice was
heavily booked for several
American and European Tours.
Auditioning for a shot at
becoming the backup vocalist for
Richie Spice, Etana vocally
floored his management team, and
was handed a plane ticket to do
a few shows in the U.S. The
ensuing fifteen months enabled
Etana to soak up valuable
experience as a stage performer
in Europe and North America.
Eager to make her
own mark, one day Etana started
writing her own song with the
help of the guitar player and
percussionist from Richie
Spice's band. The song idea had
been floating in her thoughts
for weeks and eventually the
melody for her debut smash
single "Wrong Address" was born.
Simple yet effective, the single
was a fusion of Jazz and Reggae.
The song was the first of its
kind, and in 2006 Wrong Address
was rewarded with heavy radio
rotations plunging it in the
number 1 position on several
local charts.
Describing her
style back then, Etana was
quoted as saying "I do music
straight from the heart,
straight from the soul, straight
from the people Isee in everyday
life". Then came her second
major hit, Roots which was an
intriguing mix of African and
reggae cultural sounds, fused
with Jamaican Creole. The song
became an anthem because of the
definitive statement "You can't
water down and dilute", featured
in the chorus.
Video's
for these first songs helped
bring Etana to the forefront of
the reggae world, and during the
summer and winter of 2007, she
made her mark as a solo artist
performing on international
events like Reggae Sumfest,
Fully Loaded, ATI Live Concert,
Irie Jamboree, Welcome to
Jamrock and Guinness Sting.
Etana began 2008
with the same high level of
focus and enthusiasm, rocking
the likes of an Air Jamaica Jazz
& Blues Festival. Etana was then
awarded Best Female Vocalist at
both the Excellence in Music &
Entertainment (EME) Awards and
the IRIE FM Radio Awards not to
mention an award for Best Solo
Female Reggae Vocalist at the
First Annual Reggae Academy
Awards, for which she had
nominations in three separate
categories.
Currently
promoting her new singles I Am
Not Afraid and Don't Forget off
her recently released debut
album - The Strong One on VP
Records, Etana is boldly taking
on the world of music with the
help of her new management team
- Solid Agency. Owner of Free
Mind Music - The Best Records,
Etana is poised to do Reggae
proud. Etana Links:
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