On The Radar #72 Jena

FRESH from making the top five of the Music Week Commercial Pop chart - ahead of Iggy Azalea, Madonna and Nicki Minaj - Brighton's Jena talks about the creation of her debut single Even If I Try.

"I was born in London but I've lived in Brighton all my life. I started learning violin when I was three and then moved into singing and dancing. At university I got into salsa and merengue music, and after graduation I recorded six Latin pop tracks that I then performed at various Latin nights at Creation nightclub, Sanctuary and Club New York.

"My influences are pop and house fused with salsa. When I first started going to salsa lessons in Brighton years ago, I immediately knew I had a passion not just for the dancing but also for the music. So it was then that I started composing my own hybrid brand of British Latin pop.

"I met Warren from Soulshaker when I first visited their London studio last summer. We talked about doing a house track fused with salsa, and a month later I returned to record it. Jenna Donnelly is a very talented member of their team who helped co-produce it.

"We co-wrote Even If I Try in the studio. Soulshaker and Jenna Donnelly produced the initial radio edit and club mix. The track was signed to Freaktone Records two months ago and has now been licensed to legendary American record label Tommy Boy Entertainment. It's already reached number five in the Music Week Commercial Pop chart which is amazing really. I can't believe it! There are also several excellent remixes on Soundcloud now by Dasco and The So Cool Network, which I love. Fatboy Slim said he likes the Dasco remix, apparently he called it "beguiling", which was very kind of him and has helped create a lot of buzz for me and the song. Thank you, Norman!

"We filmed the video in Nerja, Spain. We just caught the end of the summer heat down on the coast there and really enjoyed ourselves, especially driving around in the classic convertible Mustang.

"I'd love to record an album. It depends how big a buzz we can create with this first track! At some point I'd like to write some Bollywood-style house tracks. I spent three months in Mumbai a while back, modelling and dancing in Bollywood films, and I just love their music. So I think that could be another exciting future project."

Find out more:

www.facebook.com/pages/Jena-Even-If-I-Try/1589220117988712

www.youtube.com/watch?v=_GXLObqAobI

soundcloud.com/search?q=jena%20even%20if%20i%20try