Rena Rose

Music is my soul; it's my therapy. I need to be surrounded by it all the time. Growing up in St. Thomas, I listened to everything. My mother was Canadian/Irish and my dad Black/Caribbean and their musical tastes were a huge influence on me. Different styles of music were played at home that reflected both my parents' backgrounds—Celtic, country, R&B, reggae and calypso. (I loved Enya and Whitney Houston.) Whenever I hear reggae and calypso, I instantly associate it with happy times in the Caribbean.

As a little girl I loved to sing, but I was terribly shy with self-esteem problems. I only sang in private, alone in my room. One day when I was 12 years-old, my mother came in and caught me belting out a Mariah Carey song. It really surprised her that this little girl could hit the high notes and had such a powerful voice. After that, I only sang for her—she became my private audience.

I always loved making up my own songs. I started writing them as early as six years old, and I continue to write my own lyrics. Anything and everything inspires me. I know I have to write something down when I get a chill…and I have been getting a lot of chills this year…I've already written at least 20 songs.

I moved to New York when I was 19 years-old. It was on Halloween. My brothers convinced and encouraged me to come to Brooklyn and stay with them since there weren't many opportunities in St. Thomas. So I came here and I was a waitress at The Harlem Grill. Although, I was still very shy, I forced myself to sing in public. When I wasn't waiting tables at the grill, I was as a back-up singer for their performers and then little-by-little I sang my own songs. Finally, I overcame this terrible handicap! It was such a thrill to perform for others and see that they really enjoyed it. Now, I sing at every opportunity I have—mostly at open mikes in clubs in Brooklyn and Manhattan.

My music is jazz and soul with a hint of R&B, and my heroes are Lauryn Hill and Etta James, who inspire me—just like they do—to put my heart and soul into to my lyrics. Listen to them and you'll get to know the real Rena Rose. I lay out my heart and soul in my music. There's no pretense. Everything is real. And that's what it's all about—keeping it real. I'm simply a 27 year-old mother of two little girls who loves to write songs and sing. I want to be a good mom and singer, and teach my girls that you can get through life without being harsh or obnoxious, and that's reflected in my music. The most important thing I want them to know that hard work and doing what you love is what gets you through each day.
This is my life.

A.J.

Growing up in Chesapeake, Virginia, Alen Jenkins, or as his friends call him, A.J., has spent a lifetime in music. Starting with breakdance in elementary school, he fell in love with hip-hop culture and styled himself a b-boy. His parents, raised on classic soul, funk, and disco, broadened his scope of music after being turned off by the negativity they heard in rap. Hesitant as kids are in listening to their parents’ music, A.J. liked what he heard in his father’s collection of symphonic soul by groups like The Stylistics, The Delfonics, and dusty old doo-wop records. His mother, more into dancing divas, introduced him to the disco of Chic, Rose Royce, and Patti Labelle.

Wanting more of a part in the music he was putting moves to, A.J. started singing and writing his own songs in his teens. Using his knowledge of urban classics, he creates R&B that pays tribute to the past with an understanding of future soul. “I want to make music that makes people dance and grab another drink. But at the same time, make music that lets people know I understand them.”

And by that, he means the everyday story of our lives. Losing his father to cancer, and living with the ups and downs of a career in show business, he uses music to distract from the pain but also celebrate the joys and accomplishments in life. “I want my music to be like a soundtrack for people. It should take them someplace.”

Rooted in a community of aspiring artists and producers, Virginia has become a competitive and influential market in turning out solid R&B and hip-hop acts. While they come from different parts of the state, A.J. has a sound that compares with both successful natives Chris Brown and Trey Songz.

His first release on upstart New York City label Umbrella Records is Make It To the Top, a reflection on the hustle to dream big over smoothed out, modern R&B grooves.