Epsom Downs, UK (Top40 Charts/ Shena Official Website) - After providing backing vocals for Mariah Carey,
James Brown and
Charlotte Church, Shena, one of the UK's most versatile vocalists, is releasing her debut album of stunningly sumptuous soul tracks and now she is the star herself!
'One Man Woman' due out on the 1st September is a beautiful collection of 'stripped down soul', showcasing Shena's dazzling vocal style. Whitney Houston and Lauryn Hill have been key influences and Shena exudes their sexy self-confidence and shares their ability to captivate audiences, promising to appeal to an international audience.
Making her mark on the music scene, Shena sang on Michael Gray's 2004 smash 'The Weekend', and performed the track live to the nation on Top Of The Pops.
Singing has always been a passion for Shena. When she was a young girl she was greatly influenced by the baritone voice of her Grenadian father, describing him as a 'Calypso Nat King Cole!' Her talent was spotted at an early age and Shena's school teachers paid with their own funds for professional singing lessons after school to better her chances of having a career in music.
However, life at school was not always so rosy.As she began studying for her A-Levels, she received a less motivating welcome from the new teacher of her music class. She was exposed to her first major dose of cynicism and was forced to deal with prejudice. Although branded as someone that 'would only ever become a secretary', Shena turned the negative into positive motivation, and set out to prove him wrong.
A rendition of an aria from Gershwin's Porgy and Bess won her an unconditional place at the Royal Academy of Music which certainly began to prove the tutor wrong and reinforced her faith in herself. At the Royal Academy she studied classically, but loved commercial music too. From graduating she got her first big break working with Michael Ball and since then has worked with Luther Vandross, Girl's Aloud, Sugababes, Angie Stone, Chaka Khan, Lesley Garrett, Belinda Carlisle and Kelly La Roc to name but a few!
Performing on BBC's 'Songs Of Praise' at the tender age of 21, Shena sang 'Don't Cry For Me' in a tribute to the tragic loss of murdered teenager Stephen Lawrence. The BBC was inundated with messages from the British public demanding to know who this amazing young performer was, and requesting her to release the track! Now with six top twenty dance hits under her belt it has been a natural progression for Shena to release her own material. She feels that she has paid her dues as a backing vocalist.
Shena is also a talented writer and has written tracks for Javine and Lemar (Eternal wanted one of her tracks but she kept it for herself!)
Shena is finally taking the next step and releasing her own material. She can currently can also be heard taking the lead vocal on the hit 'Watch Out' by Alex Gaudino, which is currently a favourite on Radio 1, Kiss FM and London's Capital Radio.
www.myspace.com/shenawinchester
Shena is performing around the UK on the following dates:
20th Sep 2008 - Oceana, Southampton
30th Sep 2008 - JJ's, Hanley
