Ye (formerly Kanye West) gets high praises from Grammy nominated singer Shenseea for assisting in her career. The Jamaican artist shares her excitement for her upcoming sophomore album, and her passion for creating timeless music in an interview with Billboard Magazine released on Wednesday.
Reflecting on her collaboration with Ye, Shenseea couldn’t contain her excitement. “One of the moments I knew things changed was when I did the collaboration with Kanye,” she shared enthusiastically. “I felt like that opened a whole different type of doors — fashion, hip-hop, different artists just reaching out. I think that Kanye is cool, as much as how he’s artistic, he’s a cool person to look at. Always entertaining. I feel like me being associated with him, it has led me to a lot of open doors.”
Ye helped the Dancehall star achieved her first credit on a certified RIAA Gold single in the U.S. on August 15, 2023, with their collaboration “Pure Souls.” The track with her vocals, featuring Roddy Rich, debuted at No. 52 on the Billboard Hot 100 and marked Shenseea’s debut on Spotify’s Global Chart at no. 22, making her the first Jamaican artist to do so in five years. Credited as “C. Lee” for her contribution as a writer, Shenseea became the first female Jamaican Dancehall artist to hit the Hot 100 in 17 years.
This accomplishment placed her among female Jamaican artists like Nyla, Lady Saw, Diana King, Sister Nancy and Dawn Penn who have also sold 500,000 units or more of a single in the U.S.
At 24 years old, Shenseea is in an elite group of Dancehall artists, including Sean Paul and Shaggy, to have two Billboard Hot 100 entries in the same week, with “Ok Ok Pt. 2” also charting. Despite her achievements, Shenseea remained grounded, expressing her focus on financial security and making music that resonates with her fans.
Two years ago after the collaboration was released, Shenseea tweeted, “I want @kanyewest to mentor my creative directions”
Discussing her forthcoming album “Never Get Late Here“, the Interscope Records artist said its a mix of excitement and pressure. “I’m excited, it’s my second project,” she said. “You know you set the tone with the first one and you know you should always try to beat the first one so it’s a little bit pressuring but I am still excited and going with it nonetheless.”
When Billboard host Tetris Kelly enquired about the significance of her the titled, She said it’s important for her to create timeless music. “It means timeless music,” she explained. “You can put on this album and it will never get old. It’s pretty deep and I love timeless music, that’s the type of music I grew up on and that’s the type of music I think that lasts and really inspires great artists to come. I want to do that because I have been inspired by great artists.”
