About Shena
From the moment Shena’s teacher told her mum that the best she could hope for was to be a secretary, Shena’s main goal in life was to prove him wrong and boy, has she done just that.
When considering many of history’s great female singers, Shena’s Gospel roots are hardly an original source of inspiration, but when those roots involved working on a show named‘Mama I Want To Sing’ and getting a hug from a certain Mr Stevie Wonder, it must be said that very few experiences could exceed that for a soulfully stimulating beginning to a very illustrious career…
After graduating from the Royal Academy of Music with Honours, Shena went on to star in the hit musical ‘Carmen Jones’ touring across Japan, starred as the lead in the show‘What a Feeling’ and performed as one of the soul girls in the touring version of ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’, also finding the time to appear on numerous occasions as Crystal in the stage show,‘Little Shop of Horrors’.
After gaining much valuable experience in the theatre, Shena began working as a backing vocalist for artists such as Mariah Carey, Luther Vandross, Angie Stone, Chaka Khan, Mica Paris, Lisa Stansfield, Denise Williams, Girls Aloud, Sugababes, Simple Minds, Belinda Carlisle, James Brown, Patty LaBelle, Joss Stone and Amy Winehouse to name but a few. Shena has appeared on many TV shows including ‘Strictly Come Dancing’ and ‘The Charlotte Church Show’, and she has also performed live at most major music venues in the UK includingWembley Arena, Birmingham NEC, and the O2 arena.
Shena has, however, always been a lead singer at heart and ‘The Weekend’ was the track that launched Shena’s International success after reaching no. 7 in the UK National charts. Shena has now featured on 14 UK top 40 hits, including ‘Nothing I Won’t do’, ‘Dare Me’, ‘Guilty’ and ‘Watch out’ and is now internationally renowned as the voice behind many house music anthems. Having also worked with producers such as The Freemasons and Eric Morillo, Shena has traveled to over 60 countries to perform, enjoying major success in the charts and on the International club PA circuit.
Described by Heat Magazine as “the UK’s favourite dance diva” and heralded by the likes of Martha Walsh and Jocelyn Brown as a star in the making, Shena is now stepping beyond the tag of ‘featured vocalist’ to become a major recording artist in her own right. Her debut solo album, 2079 combines classic disco with current production styles and contemporary lyrical subject matter to form a fusion she calls ’Dizco’. Dizco takes the lush and funky production, fantastic song writing and dramatic vocal style of the late ’70′s and early ’80′s disco era and fuses it with elements of breaks, hip-hop, electro and disco-house to create a striking new sound. Using her life long passion for soul and disco music as inspiration, Shena and her talented team of producers and musicians have created an album that celebrates the ‘Good Times’ of a classic era but sits perfectly in the present age.
Shena’s first three singles ‘Can’t Stop The Rain’, ‘My Fantasy’and ‘Nasty Little Rumour’ have been play listed and/or heavily supported by Radio 2, Smooth, BBC London and many other specialist and regional stations, with support also coming fromFlaunt, The Chart Show, The Guardian, The Sunday Times, The Daily Telegraph, Blues and Soul, Attitude Magazine, The Observer Music monthly, Blues and Soul, OK magazine, London Lite, The Mirror and innumerable other online sites as well as having great success with her solo releases on the underground disco circuit and on the international club music scene.
Shena is enjoying particular success with her new material in the Russian Federation, juggling her dual role as pop star and Mum to travel there on a weekly basis to perform to her huge fan base. She was also invited to perform alongside fellow divas Faith Evans and Yolanda Adams in Los Angeles during a mini West Coast tour last year, and you can see her adventures in ‘Shena Goes Stateside’, a 9 episode video series currently being featured on Muzu TV.
The aforementioned singles will be included on the new album along with the new single ‘Look Don’t Touch’, released on
19/07/2010. The Album, 2079, is released on the 02/08/2010
‘Look Don’t Touch’ - “very fresh lyrics ponder an age-old but taboo issue over a Shalamar/Whispers influenced but smack up to date production. Killer.”
“Genius – The closest approximation to the magic Chic created in the late 70’s” – The Guardian
“Superb” – Steve Wright BBC Radio 2
“Legendary dance vocalist” - Scott Mills on his BBC Radio 1 show
“The UK’s favourite club diva” - Heat magazine
“A rich, husky soul voice that dances octaves with ease” - BBC Online
“A set of tunes that could come direct from the turntables of a 70’s night” - The Sunday Times
“Smoking hot” - Attitude magazine
“A star in the making” - Jocelyn Brown
“Absolutely love it! Beautifully classy production and Shèna looks and sounds amazing…Breath of fresh air!” – The Freemasons.
