Shenseea ADD
“A Shenseea!” is what you hear at the beginning of every track, introducing the newest artiste to the Dancehall/Reggae community. However, please don’t believe for a minute that Shenseea can be placed into a single category. This multifaceted, multitalented young Queen is out to break through all boundaries to show the world that good music is all encompassing and boundless. But who is Shenseea?
Shenseea, as she is affectionately named, was born Chinsea Lee at Mandeville Hospital in the parish of Manchester. This was her break out debut, because from the moment she could walk and talk, Chinsea was on the verge of being a star. At about the age of three, Chinsea moved to Kingston, ultimately leading her on the path to stardom. While Chinsea’s ambition is to be an international artiste, she was focused on learning the business from inside out. So she applied herself to her studies, graduating from Mona High School to move on to Exed Community College where she majored in Entertainment Management.
Though, due to some financial hardships not too uncommon to the Kingston area, Chinsea was unable to finish her studies. Some individuals would see this as a setback and give up on their dreams to make ends meet. For Chinsea, it wasn’t that easy, as she had even more reason to keep going, her beautiful son Raj. As a single mother, Chinsea knew she had to keep going to give him everything so he never wanted for nothing. It was during this time that she was introduced to Romeich Major, the entertainment and promotion juggernaut on the Kingston area.
“I've always wanted to be an artiste as well as to learn the business,” says Shenseea. “There is just so much to learn, from what routes to take to strategy, marketing and development. And I want to learn it all, so I can help myself and those around me that have been there pushing me from the beginning.” Romeich is one of these people, immediately taking a liking to the young artiste and saw the limitless potential in her, so he hired her as one of his signature promotion girls. As an artiste, this was when the moniker of Shenseea took hold. From there she was brought into the world of hard work and perseverance, doing promo work during the days and recording at the in-house studio at Romeich Entertainment headquarters during her free time.
However, the world of artiste development doesn’t start from signing that artiste contract. For Shenseea, it started years earlier as she found inspiration from watching MTV Jamz and MTV Hits. As a young Shenseea, she was enamored by the achievements of her favourite artists like Whitney Houston, Beenie Man, Buju Banton and Bounty Killer just to name a few. But it was at church that Shenseea took her first step to moving towards her dream. “I did an acapella of Whitney Houston’s ‘Greatest Love of All’ and I was so shy that I ran out of the church [crying] immediately after I finished singing,” says Shenseea. To her surprise, people fell in love with her voice and she continued signing in the church, even joining the choir, developing her range even further as an artiste and performer. It wasn’t until Shenseea signed with Romeich Entertainment as its first recording artiste that she began to take her career in music seriously. What began as a job promoting brands like Hennessey, Red Stripe, Smirnoff and Magnum at some of Jamaica’s most elite events quickly turned into opportunities to launch her career, showcasing her talent and building an eager fan following.
During her off days, you can now find Shenseea at Romeich Entertainment recording a new track daily. At the beginning of 2016, Shenseea recorded her debut single “Jiggle Jiggle” that shot through the island like a strike from lightning. As though this wasn’t enough for a new artist, opportunities lent itself to her again when she was approached to work with Vybz Kartel on a track titled “Loodi”. This one track took hold of the airwaves like wildfire adding to what is now an impressive repertoire of music for this young artiste. Garnering attention from Teen Vybe Magazine, Shenseea was ranked twice on their Top 10 Chart for both songs; #2 – Shenseea ft. Vybz Kartel – Loodi and #4 – Shenseea – Jiggle Jiggle. To be ranked on Teen Vybe’s “Top 10 Charts” with artistes like Vybz Kartel, Alkaline, Ding Dong and Chris Martin just proves how exceptional of an artiste Shenseea is and will prove to be for years to come.
While obstacles may have prevented Shenseea from completing her educational goals, it provided her another path to her dream of being the international artiste she always knew she would be. With Romeich in her corner, guiding her every step of the way and showing her how hard work pays off, Shenseea is developing as an artiste and a business entity. For her fans, Shenseea says, “I was really bummed that I couldn’t continue my studies, but I moved on. The opportunity came and I took it without knowing how far I would get. Who knows, if I had finished how long it would've took me or what things that I would have to face and do to reach where I am today. I’m still a work in progress, still have a lot to learn BUT I just really wanna say no matter what the obstacle to your goal is/are, don't be discouraged just change your route to that goal instead of the goal itself and once you trust God you just have to believe that everything happens for a reason In everything that you do. Comments are gonna arise from all different types of people. Not where I wanna be, but I have a far way to go, but [I’m] much further from where I was! Stay focused and never give up!”
Everyday new opportunities are coming about and things are in the works to launch Shenseea globally, but for now just enjoy the music Shenseea is releasing via her social media pages, the airwaves and the many events she is being booked for. The door has been kicked open for Shenseea and there is only one direction to go and that is forward.
