Che’nelle – Coming Up From Down Under

A new R&B sensation has landed in the United States by the name of Che’nelle. Virgin Recording artist, Che’nelle 22, has released her new debut single, “I Fell in Love with a DJ” for her club-goer fans. Che’nelle is just the right mix of hard hip hop, pop and rhythmic dance hall music. Che’nelle is already a hit songwriter in her hometown of Perth in Australia where she even opened for Kanye West. She has now arrived in the United States to release her long awaited debut album.

ASIANCE: So tell me a little about yourself?

Che’nelle: I was born in Malaysia then relocated to Australia when I was 10 years old. I was raised in an environment where I was constantly exposed to music. My father is a civil engineer and architect. When I was little I would sing at his karaoke lounge and make up my own songs. My mom would always bring home dance music and that’s also another reason why I love music so much. My mother would teach me new songs during the weekend, since I didn’t have school I would go to the karaoke bar, be the youngest cat there. I would ask my dad to plug in the song and I would perform it. That’s basically my life for the first 10 years.

ASIANCE: Was singing something you always wanted to do? How did you fall into it?

Che’nelle: I’m a karaoke girl. I started singing at 5. I never really sat down and thought I wanted to be a singer when I was a kid. My dad sang, everyone sang. I though it was a normal hobby. When I got to Australia my mom started putting game into competitions. I also started singing for the church. Then I joined a band when I was 14, a cover band. I did that for about 5 years. So my performing skills grew from that. That’s when I started to think I wanted to pursue this professionally. After high school, I auditioned for a university; I was accepted so I knew this was for me. That’s where I learned to song write. I never thought of myself as a song writer, I just wanted to sing. So I researched producers, so I could create a demo. After all that, I really found my own sound. Then I put up a Myspace page, then one day, Charles, Charles Dickson Emailed me. I was skeptical because he was American, and I didn’t know. He kept emailing me with his background information, so I gave it shot. I felt like I was risk-taking, but he felt more positive then negative. I sent him a demo and we talked everyday for 8 months to build a trust. Then he came to Perth to see how I did things. He took all his information back with him then I received a phone call a week later and he was in the office with the Virgin CEO and A&R. It was really early in the morning, so it was a shock, but they liked my stuff and wanted to put it down in a week. After the phone call, I went back to sleep for a second then I woke back up and was simply ecstatic.

Che’nelle

ASIANCE: What kind of music did you listen to growing up?

Che’nelle: Overall, I listen to so many different genres. I listen to a lot of reggae, R&B and dance hall. I would listen to a lot of rock and lot of heavy metal; I don’t really like heavy metal too much. I’ve always listened to a wide variety of music. Malay and Latin Music, I play! It’s all about the rhythm, that’s why I love dance hall so much.

ASIANCE: Do you consider yourself an Asian artist?

Che’nelle: Hell YEA! I don’t consider myself American yet, I’ve only been here since February, that’s because I got signed to an American Label. You know what people can see me as however they want to see me as. I just see me as a person that has a new genre of music to bring to the world. Not just American, or Australian or Asian. I’m a mixture, because I was bought up in a white society, I still have my Asian in me, but I’m a real mix. As long as you love my music, that’s all that matters. I haven’t really seen an Asian American artist or an Asian or western artist that has made an effort to enter into the Asian society and bring something back to them. Except for Coco Lee, but Coco Lee is so Americanized, so I want to be that person.

ASIANCE: You’re basically a pioneer for Asian American Women trying to enter the music industry realm, how do you feel about that?

Che’nelle: I’m happy to have that responsibility, I’m excited. I tell this to everybody, I never used to believe that anything is possible, but ANYTHING is possible to the dot. I just don’t from KL, I’m from the east, almost jungle style. I’m from a place where people are just so simple minded where they love their nature and I moved from that. That’s all I knew. To Perth, still not Sidney, it’s isolated and I got signed to America’‚¬¦ so anything is possible. You just need to be positive, believe in yourself and build a network. When you have the support system, you have this aura, edge, and charisma. All things happen for a reason. If you have something special, push it.

Che’nelle

ASIANCE: Any collaborations you’re interested in?

Che’nelle: Hell Yes! I think Will.i.am is very talented. I would be interested in doing collaborations with anyone.

ASIANCE: How about Rain from Korea?

Che’nelle: Of course, I actually spoke to his manager; I expressed interest, so we’ll see.

ASIANCE: What is it like being in America? American vs. Australia?

Che’nelle: I miss home. Food tastes different; everything is extra sweet and extra big. Appetizers are entrées in Perth. The people are very different, it’s multi-cultural both here and Australia, but the people here are more confident. You have to watch out who you talk to here; in Australia you can give you number to anyone. It’s clean and fresh in Australia, not that it’s dirty here. Music wise, hip-hop and R&B has only started to grow now, not in local radio stations, but community radio stations.

ASIANCE: Did you leave any boyfriends in Australia?

Che’nelle: No, I didn’t leave a boyfriend. I left a lot of memories, friends and family. It’s a big change, it’s across the world.

ASIANCE: Any last words?

Che’nelle: I’m hungry. Let’s go eat.