Today we’d like to introduce you to Shana Simone.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I started singing as young as 5 years old when my parents, both ministers, would put my siblings and I together to sing as a group. I have 12 siblings total! I sang in numerous choirs and groups over the years, started writing songs around 14 when I recorded my first demo, and started getting into talent shows and competitions.
I’ve always had an entrepreneurial spirit from a very young age and always knew that I would grow up to have some sort of business or venture of entrepreneurship. While growing up, I mostly surrounded myself with other singers and musicians, which allowed me to grow a wide range of musician friends throughout the Tri-state area.
After graduating high school, I did Accounting work, then at the age of 22, I joined the Air Force Reserves where I completed my Associates in Information Management and a Bachelors in Information Technology. I ultimately reached the rank of Master Sergeant and managed the IT office for Dover Air Force Base before retiring after 20 years of service.
Along with serving as a Military Reservist, starting in 2009, I started a full-time Federal job as an IT Manager. In 2016 I opened a Braiding Salon and ran it on weekends and evenings while still maintaining my full-time Federal job, which I gave up in 2017 to run my business full-time.
As a singer, I performed throughout the Tri-state area throughout my 20s, singing R&B and Jazz, and having my own band with which I would do my own shows. From 2001 to 2004, I performed full-time in conjunction with my duties as a Reservist, and this allowed me to spend a lot of time in the studios and on the music scene wherever musicians would corral.
I have derived my sound from a love for the gospel, hip-hop, jazz, and r&b, with the ultimate goal of becoming known as a “Gospel R&B” singer. I have performed at events all over the country for crowds of up to 30,000 people including the Blue Rocks Stadium in Delaware, Talen Energy Stadium (U.S. Women’s World Cup Championships), Beverly Hills Hilton (L.A.), Georgia Conference Center, Dover Downs Hotel & Casino, and Dover Air Force Base.
Some of the venues where I frequented and performed in and around Philly include Clef Club of Jazz, Ortlieb’s Jazz Haus, Congressman Chaka Fattah’s Home, Voorhees Mansion (NJ), Zanzibar Blue, Chez Labelle’s, Black Lily, Temple University, World Café Live, and Warmdaddy’s.
After quite a few years of “burning the candle on both ends”, in 2009 I put music on the back-burner to start my family, only taking gigs here and there to stay somewhat active in music, and doing a lot of National Anthem performances. In 2015 I was chosen to perform at the Steve Harvey Neighborhood Awards in Atlanta, and in 2016 I was hired to perform the National Anthem at a star-studded gala at the Hollywood Hilton in L.A.
Fast-forward to 2021, I started making plans to get back into my passion, performing at a Gospel concert/festival in October, then signing up with Dulaneyland Music in December for the production of my new single “Forgive Me Lord”.
The single was released in January 2022 and so far has had great success on Spotify with over 8,oo0 monthly listeners and more than 40,000 streams. It has been put in rotation on several digital radio shows and is available currently on most digital platforms including Apple Music, iTunes, Deezer, Amazon Music, YouTube, and Tiktok.
I am currently scheduled to perform at the 2023 SOAR Awards at the Coronado Performing Arts Theatre in Rockford, IL where everyone whose anyone in Gospel will be in attendance.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
There have definitely been some obstacles along the way. I honestly feel that if I was one of those artists who was willing to compromise my morals in order to “level up”, I would have made it “to the top” years ago, but I was never the kind of girl who would do “just about anything” to get there.
The music industry can be a tough industry full of deceitful, jealous and envious people who don’t want to see you make it, or feel that you have to do something for them in exchange for what they do for you. There are also a lot of wannabes out there who feel like they can get you to the top when really they’re struggling just as hard if not harder than you to get where they’re going as well.
You have to use the gift of discernment and be watchful along the way for those who may not have your best interest at heart. I have sung on quite a few “girl groups” in both R&B and Gospel and many times one person is jealous of another or there turns out to be too many people wanting to be more in the forefront than the others, or one who wants more leads than background (that was me, LOL).
Turns out, groups weren’t my thing. My Gospel group, however, never had those issues and every time we performed the anointing would fall, hence our name “Anointing Fall”. Although I made the decision to put my singing on the back-burner around 2009, life was good otherwise, but there was an emptiness within me without choosing to perform or record like I used to.
In 2010 there started to be one tragedy after another. My brother who had 10 years as a Philadelphia Police Officer, was put in prison for 16 years for a crime that occurred while working in a corrupt Police Department. A few years later in 2014 two nephews were both brutally murdered in January, then in February.
The following year in Jan 2015, a close friend was murdered in a domestic situation and could not be found for years to come. After standing in the gap for her family, we tragically lost my step-son to a senseless murder in March of that year as well. These things led to a few years of trying to cope while raising my family and being diagnosed with “Chronic Fatigue Syndrome”, a relative of Fibromyalgia.
I had to humbly learn how to slow down and to say no to many events and family gatherings. I no longer had the energy to do gigs that required 3 to 4 hours on the bandstand or endless nights in the studio or on the road. It felt like such a setback, yet I still had a passion deep inside for music that I could never let go of. However, since music was my “place of peace”, I no longer had that as an option, until I could learn how to get my health and physical wellness back on track.
I continued to run my business, pacing myself and focusing on my health, and eventually in 2020 was able to take myself off of medication and use what I had learned over the years about my body to be able to maintain everyday life with the fullness of life that I had been missing for 5 whole years!
I am now at a point in life where I feel like I have a hold of things, and have learned how to make each day another step towards reaching my dreams of still becoming a successful Recording Artist. I have surrounded myself with a web of family and friends that support me and have held me up over the years. It makes life so much easier when you just learn how to let go of people that don’t belong on your journey with you…
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
Although I have worn many hats throughout my career, I believe that by combining them all into one, I can use my skills to market myself, maximize social media, expand my musician-friends network, coordinate and conduct business meetings, manage my finances, take master classes, book shows, travel AND at the same time love on my kids and husband!
I want people to know me as a Singer/Songwriter who creates music that is inspirational, yet mainstream, similar to Koryn Hawthorne or Tori Kelly.
I’m most proud of making the sacrifices that I made to better myself in order to build my character and become who I am today.
Growing up as one of 12 children definitely had its challenges, but dealing with 13 personalities (my parents and 11 siblings) on a daily basis taught me how to deal with all types of people, and how to consider others. Also, joining the military got me away from the inner-city, helped me to see the world, meet people from all walks of life, and to learn new skills.
What sets me apart from others is that even if I may feel that I have reached a pinnacle in certain areas of life, I never get content with it, I continue to seek different ways to do things and continually strive to become even better at whatever I want to continue to be great in.
What does success mean to you?
The definition of success to me is first, finding your interests, abilities & talents, then perfecting them continually, and finally releasing them to the world, unapologetically!
Contact Info:
- Website: linktr.ee/shanasimone
- Instagram: http://instagram.com/shanasimoneofficial
- Facebook: http://facebook.com/shanasimonewallace
- Twitter: http://twitter.com/ShanaSingingBig
- Youtube: http://youtube.com/shanasimonewallace
- SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/shana-simone-wallace
- Other: http://reverbnation.com/shanasimone
