Three Jamaican Voices

three jamaican voices
Author

Malaika

Release Date

Friday, November 29, 2013

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Samantha, Charles, and Tina Simone are three talented Jamaican performers who are pursuing excellence in their craft. The paths taken by these three Jamaican singers are not necessarily typical. What is certain, however, is that if their mind-sets and ambitions remain focused, chased with enthusiasm and faith, they are guaranteed results, perhaps beyond their expectations.

All three vocalists are armed with varying degrees of classical training in the formative years of their vocal development. Their repertoires have embraced non-reggae genres despite the expectation in the global industry that as Jamaicans, they will remain in the comfort zones of Reggae and Dancehall. Classical voice training served as the platform for their explorations into other genres such as Jazz, R&B, Neo-Soul and Opera. These three golden voices are already testimony to the world that Jamaicans vocalists are versatile.

How Did They Start?

Samantha Strachan began singing in church at the tender age of 5. Her mother recognized the immense talents of Samantha and her sibling Ana and together they began performing professionally when Samantha was only 10 years old. Her first performances with her sister were for the church community and these were so well received that they branched out into the wider communities. Samantha and her sister Ana, were dubbed Grand Champion Performers of the World at the World Championships of the Performing Arts in 2003, held in Hollywood, California. Soon after, she re-located to Hollywood to continue her education in music, dance and acting. During her studies, she gained numerous performance opportunities including performing for Dionne Warwick, the California State Senate as well as singing the American National Anthem for the swearing ceremony for the County Supervisor for Los Angeles, Mark Ridley-Thomas.

Charles-Anthony Moore's earliest experiences of singing began at the age of eight at the St. Richard's Primary School Boys Choir under the directorship of Lloyd Hall. He would not resume singing until later at the University of the West Indies. Here, he would not only have his first conducting experiences with the Universities and College's Christian Fellowship Chorale, but would also be introduced to classical singing. He became a member of the Jamaica Folk Singers, Jamaica Musical Theatre Company, the Diocesan Festival Choir and the University of the West Indies Singers - all which have helped to mold his craft as a singer and actor. Despite obtaining a university degree in an unrelated field, Charles could not resist the call of the performing arts - it beckoned him to pursue studies in Vocal Performance at the University of Mississippi, where he is now completing his final year of studies.

Tina Simone Mowatt, was surrounded by music since birth, being born into a family of musicians. She began singing in the church from an early age. She honed her talents within such groups as the Catholic Youth Movement Choir, The University of the West Indies Chorale and The University of the West Indies Singers. She also expanded her performing repertoire by performing in two award winning productions of the Jamaica Musical Theatre Company, playing lead roles in both. Tina Simone decided to pursue music on a full-time basis in 2010, despite fears of financial instability as a result of leaving the nine-to-five world. With the solid foundation laid in multiple genres, Tina Simone has embraced a solo career that sees her performing a wide range of genres, including, classical, jazz, rhythm and blues and reggae. Her recent solo show entitled METAMORPHOSIS , held in December 2011, showcased her versatility and her readiness to become established as an International Female Jamaican Artiste.

Where are they Now?

Samantha is now in studio in Jamaica. She is working on a music project with a world renowned Jamaican Artiste, discovering her own unique sound and benefitting from his experience and tutelage. With her management team in place, she is seeking to gain greater performing experience as solo act, with the ultimate goal of landing a recording contract. Samantha has all intentions of taking her performance education to the next level, and her dreams include starring as a lead singer/actress on Broadway,

Charles is now preparing to take on his first opera lead role as Mack the Knife in Kurt Weill's Threepenny Opera, which has had the song of the same name made popular by many artistes, including Frank Sinatra. The show will be performed in its original language of German and will enjoy four performances. He has also successfully competed in the first round of Classical Singer, a national competition in the United States geared at showcasing young classical and opera talents. The second round of competitions will commence shortly in Chicago. Being an International Jamaican Opera singer is not unique, but none have been seen in recent history. Charles hopes to make his mark in this arena, proudly representing his country.

Tina Simone has decided that she is now ready for the international experience. Though not sure of eligibility, she is preparing an audition tape for the NBC show, The Voice . She hopes to successfully audition for the third season, which is scheduled to commence filming in August, 2012. She hopes to make her country proud by making it to the widely televised finals and to also exploit the tremendous opportunities available. She is also slated to perform in New York in August at a show celebrating Jamaica's 50th Anniversary, hosted by the incomparable Oliver Samuels. Through her music, Tina Simone intends to show the world that Jamaican Singers are capable of excelling in any genre of music they choose

Samantha, Charles, and Tina Simone are three talented Jamaican performers who are not widely known. The choice of genres and the paths taken by them are not unique to Jamaican aspirants but these types of journeys rarely enjoy exposure and support. It may be even suggested that unless Jamaican artistes are pursuing Reggae or Dancehall genres, they should not expect much support from the local and international audiences. If this is so, shouldn't this be changed?

SongArtistTimePlay
Broadway BabySamantha Strachan2.00{audio}Broadway Baby|broadway-baby.mp3{/audio}
Lonely HouseCharles-Anthony Moore2.00{audio}Lonely House|lonely-house.mp3{/audio}
Touch Me In The MorningTina Simone Mowatt2.00{audio}Touch Me In The Morning|touch-me-in-the-morning.mp3{/audio}

{gallery}three-jamaican-voices{/gallery}


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