Beautiful women continue to grace the pages of Hip Hop. But what distinguishes Stella is her ability to step out of the rap's established dollhouse and give young women an uncensored voice to relate to. Unapologetically original, her approach to song writing and music production positions her as the complete artist. A young, talented, lyricist who writes from the heart with heat, and co-produces every song. "People are always trying to dress you up and tell you what's the right thing to say,"says Stella. "But, I'm not a doll. If I want to talk about the war, I'll talk about the war. If I want to tell all the dirty details of a relationship gone wrong or the problems I faced growing up, I'll put everything on the table. And, if I just want to get on a couch in a club and act reckless, than that's how I'm feeling. If you can get close enough to someone and they make you feel something its worth listening to. I let people get close to me on this album." says Stella of the debut disc executive produced by A&R Jeff "Bigg Jay" White (The Alchemist).
From Jamaica to Toronto to New York, Stella started rapping at age 15. By 16 the young lyricist began recording. She entered Canada's national demo battle; the only woman selected to compete, and won. "Her voice is so powerful, after you get over that you realize she has something to say" raved Riggs Morales, Shady Records A&R, who flew in from New York to Judge the national competition. Her buzz on the Canadian Hip Hop scene continued to grow after being featured on MuchMusic as buzz worthy and performances at Honey Jam - the acclaimed Canadian showcase dubbed the black Lillith Fair and responsible for launching the careers of Grammy Winner Nelly Furtado.
Raised in a Jamaican home, Stella recognizes a number of influences including her father who met Stella's mother when he showed up with his crates to DJ for her 23rd birthday over 25 years ago. "My father used to play his records so loud when I was kid that it would drown out the cartoons. After a while I gave up on cartoons and learned about Hip Hop and Reggae with my Dad.
"Each song I record is completely different. I love 'Dear John' for its emotion." She says. "Its about two completely dysfunctional individuals in relationship falling apart played out over Spanish guitar. 'Sleep means a lot to me. It shines a lot of light on injustices going on right here and around the world. I write from the heart about what I've gone through, what girls like me have gone through, and what my community is going through."
Stella's soulful delivery runs through every original tale of love, defiance, and the search for identity. Introspective. Provocative. Playful. Stella delivers controversial tracks like "Sleep" along side up-tempo soulful cuts like "Rich Girl". With her electric stage presence, unique delivery, and reflective content, it's only a matter of time before this Hip Hop artist arrives on the popular music platform.
