Dancehall music has been around for years. This epic genre is a style of Jamaican music that gets any listener moving. Different artist range from Sean Paul, Shaggy, Mr. Vegas, and many more. However, when you ask about the Queen of Dancehall, Spice takes that crown! She is recognized as one of the most prominent and respected dancehall artists in the world. Spice’s debut studio album, 10, was released earlier this month. It debuted at number six on the Billboard Reggae Albums chart and was nominated for Best Reggae Album at the 64th Grammy Awards. Spice is a woman who wears many hats, she’s a mother, an artist, an entrepreneur, songwriter, and is beginning to venture into real estate! The Queen of Dancehall works hard for everything she has and won’t let anyone interfere with that.
Tell us the feelings you had when creating this album, what was the inspiration?
“The inspiration behind creating this album is about finally being free! I am now an independent artist! Some people might not know but I was in a deal for 10 years that I couldn’t get out of. I am celebrating, I am finally emancipated. I can put out music when Spice wants to put out music. With this album, I was the executive producer as well so I was more hands-on. It’s very exciting!”
Spice shared with SHEEN that her previous deal was not the best. It didn’t allow her to be who she wanted to be in the industry 100%. Speaking with the Queen herself, you could feel the joy she had in her heart being able to say that she is finally free. Becoming an independent artist for the first time in 10 years was a huge accomplishment for her and she surprised the internet with a new project announcement. Her new album, ‘Emancipated’ speaks for itself and will be released this Friday, August 26th. ‘Clap Clap’ is a song Spice loves that is on the album as she enjoys dancing. She also expressed that the song ‘Bake A Man’ is a song that does dive into personal things she has gone through in her life. All of the songs mean something to her and she puts in the same hard work behind each song.
Being the Queen of Dancehall you juggle a lot of responsibility, how do you manage it?
“I honestly am still not sure if I can juggle it all. I wear so many hats and am on the road every day. I am an entrepreneur with my hands in the restaurant business as well as real estate. To manage my time I set alarms. Whatever I have going on I will set an alarm for it and stay on top of things that way. But one thing about me, I will not miss birthdays for my children, holidays, or any other important dates.”
Spice came to America with the dreams, goals, and aspirations of taking over and proving naysayers wrong. The Queen of Dancehall told SHEEN that she does sit down with her children to take the time to discuss the reasoning behind her hard work as their mother. Her children are very understanding of their mother’s demanding career as well as grateful for the sacrifices she has made for them. Her foundation, the Grace Hamilton Women Empowerment Foundation is very hands-on in the community. Just a few weeks back, $3.5 million worth of book vouchers were given away to provide children with books for school.
Being nominated for a Grammy, what does that mean for you and your country?
“Of course, this was a very historic moment for me. I was able to silence the naysayers and it meant a lot to dancehall as well. I am the first hardcore dancehall female artist to achieve this! This also is very important as it opens the doors for other female dancehall artists.”
This moment was very special to Spice because there were so many obstacles she was up against, she was told to change her music and make it more Americanized to appeal to other cultures, but Spice said no. The Queen of Dancehall is the Queen because she stayed true to herself. She stayed true to her music, her culture, and her fans. She never changed her music and because of that her hard work finally paid off. Spice explained that a lot of artists aren’t sticking to the true authentic dancehall music and she refuses to fall in that category.
How was it recording a record with Shaggy?
“It was fun! I loved it. Being able to hear positive things from a legend gave me more confidence. Aside from Shaggy being the legend he is, the relationship and bond we have is something I am forever grateful for. He is my mentor and my hero. Shaggy helped me on my journey of being a free independent artist, because of his relationship with the label I was able to break free from that deal.”
Being an international dancehall queen the fans see the glam and stardom, how much time do you dedicate to your work? What are things you miss out on?
“I am a hard worker and what I do I do for my fans. I put a lot of time, dedication, and energy into my visuals, the making f the videos, costumes, and props. I make a lot of sacrifices! If I don’t like it I change it. I was shooting a music video shot in Miami, was in Africa at the time, and got stuck in Amsterdam, it was a lot! I traveled all over the world at 7 am and didn’t finish until 8 am the next morning, that’s how dedicated I am to my career. When I was shooting a music video with Stefflon Don it was the same thing with traveling.”
Spice has never shown signs of slowing down but we do believe she is showing signs of her just getting started. The Queen expressed that she didn’t have any issues with her new project that is set to be released tomorrow because she was in full control. Being a free artist is one of the best feelings Spice has had in a long time and that decision seems to be working out in her favor! Records indicate that her last album, 10, has now surpassed an average of 9.4 million streams on Spotify. This is the only album by a female dancehall released in the last 5 years to do so. Being a super confident artist Spice knew immediately that moving to the states would work for her! Anything she starts, she completes and never doubted her dreams. She always bets on herself and comes out on top every time. When she first started she was a one-woman army doing it all by herself. She was going after her goals one way or another. Spice never forgot the promise she made to her children, she fulfilled that promise plus some. One thing she wants her fans to know is that Spice is finally emancipated and to be sure to check out the visuals for ‘Tape Measure’ tomorrow.
photos by: Spex Photography, Inc.
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