Today we’d like to introduce you to Shanelle De Anda.
Shanelle, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I was always a writer. I was really shy and reserved as a kid and had always loved reading and writing, so putting my thoughts and emotions down on paper was something that I picked up at a very young age. My dad was a music lover and exposed me to numerous records of various genres, including Hip-Hop, which would spark my own interest and love for music, very early on. Around the age of 15, I was introduced to the different sub-genres of Hip-Hop through older cousins and friends and immediately fell in love with the art of rap and lyricism. My first years of high school were spent absorbing anything and everything that had to do with Hip-Hop from learning the history, watching countless interviews and documentaries, listening to all the classic records, to eventually, teaching myself how to rap.
I was very private with my craft for the first few years. Eventually, my friends caught on and after finally hearing my material, urged me to continue pursuing music. I soon collaborated with friend and local artist, Denise De La Cruz, who featured me on her single Make It Drop in 2015. This would be my first studio recording with audio engineer Allen Falcon Of Birdcage Studios in Commerce, CA. At that time, Allen had also been working with Viva Mescal (formerly Mescalito), Mad Macks and Hollow Visions Of East Of The River. He then connected me with the group, we began writing music together that same year and the rest was history.
We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
There have definitely been struggles I’ve had to face. Though my journey through music has come a lot more naturally to me than I could’ve expected, not everyone I’ve been close to has agreed with or supported what I do, which was hard for me to understand and accept at first. It can be hard when people you thought would always support you, have a different opinion but I’ve seen so much growth within myself and have been shown so much love from so many others along with way. I learned that for every person who disagrees with you or puts you down, there is another person out there ready to support you 100%. Just keep going. As for any other struggles I’ve faced, I know that with trial, error, and persistence, no matter the circumstance, there will always be a solution and growth that comes with it.
We’d love to hear more about your work and what you are currently focused on. What else should we know?
I’m an independent Hip-Hop artist from Whittier, CA. In 2016, I became affiliated with the East Los Angeles independent Hip-Hop collective, East Of The River, who now run their own recording studio, independent radio station and weekly community open mic in Boyle Heights, as well as curating numerous Hip-Hop shows and events around the Los Angeles area. Since the release of my debut EP, Escapism, in 2017, I have now performed in several U.S. states and 4 different counties as well as on Boyle Heights native and comedian, Felipe Esparza’s Bad Decisions Tour and Los Angeles rapper, Murs’ Strange Journey Into The Unimaginable album release show with EOTR, in 2018.
My music style is influenced by classic boom bap combined with modern sounds. Accompanied by braggadocios rap styles, introspective lyrics and storytelling, I touch on a number of subjects from social issues and current events to personal experience and lifestyle. My aim has always been to create something that others like me can relate to. This music was the one thing that always allowed me complete freedom and helped me forget about my worries. Being able to personally share that with others now is a really beautiful feeling.
What were you like growing up?
I was the first born and spent a lot of time by myself as a child, so I’ve always reserved. As a toddler, my grandpa would sit and read stacks of children’s books with me and have me use his finger to point out the words as he would read them. I feel like this sparked my love for stories and words really early on as reading, writing and English would become my favorite subjects growing up. I feel like all the time I spent on my own was what might’ve started my journey as an artist; I was constantly drawing, coloring, painting and making crafts with my grandpa, who was an artist and musician himself. I feel like I owe a lot of the person I’ve become to him because he was the first true friend I had who introduced me to everything he loved. With his influence and my dad being a new parent in the early 90s, Hip-Hop was something that was a part of me from the very beginning. The first song I ever picked on my own was WC’s Still Clownin’ in 98 when I was five years old. Definitely still that Kiddo deep down.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://instagram.com/kiddohiphop
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/kiddo128
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/kiddohiphop
- Other: https://youtube.com/eotrnetwork
Image Credit:
Mighty Muds, Marissa Nicole, Jasmine Isabel, Rey Carpio, Bob Bernal, Redheart Media, Vince Horiuchi
Getting in touch: VoyageLA is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
