Today we’d like to introduce you to Shameka Marie.
Shameka, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I am a singer-songwriter, producer and now an independent label owner. I was born & raised in Aberdeen, Maryland.
I honestly thought my twin sister Tameka and I were going to be the first girls to make it to the N.B.A… At least until the WNBA started in 1996. That is when I lost all interest in basketball and channeled all my energy to writing poetry and songs. I had always sung in the church choir. My mother was the director at the time and she’d agree that I thought I was in charge as well. There’d be choir rehearsals where I’d give the notes to the altos and tenors before she got a chance to. I remember crying every time I sung a solo in church. The effect my voice had on people older than me scared the hell out of me! I was just a child, but my voice was so strong and it was touching others. I didn’t understand it then. A few years later, Lauryn Hill released “The Miseducation” and immediately I understood!
At 14, I was in an evening service at my church and we had a visiting Pastor from Delaware. Towards the middle of the service, he began to stare into the congregation and say “God wants to tell you something.” He continued to look around speaking in tongues, all of a sudden, he points to me and asked me to stand. I was confused. I didn’t want to stand up in front of everyone, but I did. He began to say “God wants to use you! You have a gift! He wants you to use your voice. He wants you to write those songs! You will change the lives of others! Believe it! Receive it!” He then asked me my name. I said “Shameka.” He then said, “Shameka you are anointed!” I sat back down asking myself, “what just happened?” At the time, I was writing lyrics to industry beats. I was in school writing poetry instead of doing my work. I was in love with the sound of r&b, but NOBODY knew any of this! I mean, secular music was not allowed in my household, so in the beginning my passion for music was a secret. If I wasn’t singing in church, I wasn’t singing.
That following summer, I got my first job and saved up to buy a karaoke machine. With that machine, I used cassette tape after cassette tape to record vocal after vocal. Background after background… I’d sneak off to my room and quietly sing over whatever beats I could find at the time. The internet was nothing like it is today. I remember the first time I heard Usher’s song “Throwback!” I was so in love with that production! I knew I had to get around people capable of making music that felt like that!
In 2004, I graduated high school and moved to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. I knew I had to get out of my hometown if I wanted to pursue any type of musical career. Philly was both different and not too far from Maryland, so I didn’t mind the change. At the time Myspace was popular, so I reached out to a few local artist & producers online once I got settled in. One producer/engineer by the name of Jeffrey “Mook” Banks responded back immediately ready to work and there my musically journey began! After working at his home for a few months, I moved him in my two bedroom apartment (Frankford & Ontario) and we worked on music all day, every day! I was working a job at the time, but when I wasn’t on the clock, I was home making music. Mook taught me not only how to record/produce music, but how to deliver my music as an artist! Around this time, I wasn’t around many singers. I was in the presence of male rappers 99% of the time.
In 2010, I attended Full Sail University for Entertainment Business. While I was recording my own vocals and writing, I knew there was more I needed to know if I wanted to excel in the music industry. I had several managers throughout the years. Each teaching me something new about myself and music. It wasn’t until I met my mentors Donnie Meadows & Chase Fairbanks (Starr Island Group) in 2013, that I really began to learn the importance of my role in the entertainment industry. At that time, I simply just loved what I did and did what I loved, but they taught me, not just the right and wrong way, but the who, what, when, where and why.
In my first meeting with Starr Island, I was told that “I was good, but not great.” And I wanted to be great! Who doesn’t want to be great? Who says that to someone? The business became more of a focus for me at this point, but not instantly. I had to grow as a person first and then as a songwriter. For years I dealt with insecurity of caring what others thought & self-doubt. And I honestly believe that anyone striving for something bigger than themselves will experience this, but you only get to it, by getting through it.
I moved to Los Angeles, California in February of 2017 without a plan and with my seven-year-old daughter, Alexis. God had pretty much, forced me out of Philly. I was sleeping in the back of a 2014 KIA Forte my 1st summer in L.A., but escaping my comfort zone and surviving that chapter of my life has a lot to do with who I am today!
Through it all on June 1, 2017, I introduced my sound to the world and released a single entitled “I’m the Man” (produced by Vanessa Woods & Triangle Park). Two months later, I lost the woman that raised me and was also, pregnant with child. I didn’t think I’d make it through emotionally or spiritually. To give life while losing life was hard.
At the end of it all, my brother Jamaal McDonald & I birthed “Lysun Ent.” and signed our first artist, Melody Campbell. On February 19, 2019, I released a buzz single entitled “2 A.M.” (produced by Dion “Dee Miinor” George). Melody Campbell’s new single entitled “Lay Up” (produced by Edward “LDB” Griffin III) is set to release April 2019! I am extremely excited for this new chapter! With all that has been poured into me, I look forward to pouring into others! Lysun Ent. is my sun after the rain.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
I don’t believe anywhere worth being will have a smooth road. I’ve experienced a lot with my transition from the east coast to the west coast. I moved here with my six-year-old daughter unprepared, but brave enough to see it through. Understanding how important discomfort is to growth is a major key!
Please tell us about Lysun Ent.
Lysun Ent. is a sound! I am a creator at heart, but having a home for artist to grow and become the best versions of themselves is all I’m about! I know how hard it is to be yourself in this industry. Lysun Ent. is about staying yourself in this industry and Loving Your Sound Unconditionally.
If you had to go back in time and start over, would you have done anything differently?
If I had to start all over, I wouldn’t do anything differently. I believe God makes no mistakes and I’m right where I belong! Everything I’ve experienced along the way is a piece of me. I wouldn’t be who I am today without my journey.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.instagram.com/lysun.ent/
- Phone: (724) 300-3037
- Email: lysunent@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shamekamarie_am/
Image Credit:
Photos taken by Will Jones (@5th.photos)
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