44
ETANA
You are about to release your new album ‘Free Expressions’. What can we expect from it? You can expect ‘nuff vibes, a whole heap of Soulful stuff and truthful lyrics.
For the people in the UK who don’t know you so well, could you tell us a bit more about how you started out as a reg- gae singer? I toured with Richie Spice for the whole of 2005, as a backing singer. Being on the road, people just kept asking who I was. Then his management requested that I record two songs. The two songs that were recorded were ‘Time’ and ‘Wrong Address’. ‘Wrong Ad- dress’ really took off and was really popular.
You mentioned ‘Wrong Ad- dress’. Tell us a bit more about what that song is about and why you wrote it? I wrote ‘Wrong Address’ because of a real-life experience that my aunt had. She applied for a job and they rejected her application. She was told next time not to put the garrison/’ghetto’ address on the application. Considering every- thing that is going on in Jamaica, somebody who tries to take a posi- tive step should not be held back because of where they are from or where they live.
Since your highlighting of the issue with that song, has the situation changed much in Jamaica? Oh yes. I have seen so many changes it’s unbelievable. In the past year and a half, they have in- troduced government programmes where busses go into the garrisons and pick up the youths who are in the programme, take them to work and then pick them back up and take them back to the community they are from at the end of the day. So even if the gangs are active and fighting each other, those people who live there and have jobs also, have passes that allow them to leave safely. There is nobody hold- ing anybody back anymore and I think that is really wonderful.
That is amazing, you must be very proud? Very, very, very proud. To hear Por- tia Simpson-Miller (Jamaican ex- Prime Minister) talk about ‘Wrong Address’ and the people from the wrong address and helping out people from the wrong address. They have been doing a lot of work I must admit and I am grateful.
REGGAE/DANCEHALL Trina John - Charles
Etana, ‘The Strong One’, spreads messages of self love, whilst highlighting social injustice, over a Jazz infused, Soulful Reggae sound. However, the powerful singer we see before us almost gave up on music.
You were born Shauna McK- enzie, so where did the name Etana come from and what does it mean? Etana means ‘The Strong O ne’ in Swahili. I chose that name because it rhymed with Shauna. I believe that most people are aware that women are beautiful in every way all across the world, but not every woman is aware of the true strength of a woman.
Often, female Jamaican artists follow the same kind of pat- tern. Do you think that women are given as much freedom in their music as their male coun- terparts in terms of Reggae and Dancehall? Yes, women are given enough freedom. A lot of female Dancehall artists choose that style or that route, they think that it’s the popu- lar way or the easiest way. I don’t think freedom has anything to do with it. It is down to choice.
You have said that some of your best experiences on stage have been in Africa. What makes you feel that way? Reggae music is like food to the soul in Africa. I think the people really identify with the messages that are in Reggae music and the way that we express it in our music. There are some places in Africa where they only wish they could be so free to express themselves like we can in Jamaica. Certain things like oppression. They can’t talk about it, because of fear of the government or retaliation from other political figures, and here it is in a song from Jamaica. They can just play it and it means everything to them, because that’s how they really feel, that is how they are living.
You are a role model to many women. What advice would you give to the women read- ing? Life is the greatest gift. No matter what you are going through. You may think this is the end, you can’t take it and you
Etana returns with her highly anticipated new album, Free Expressions, which drops in Feb!
feel as though you won’t make it, be sure that this situation shall and will pass. You will look at it later on in life and laugh. Just push through it. If you think you have taken the last step, take one step more. And love yourself, before you think to love someone else, learn to appreciate you and who you are first.
THE GUESTLIST NETWORK | JANUARY / FEBRUARY 2011
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48