We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Rina Chanel. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Rina below.
Rina, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.
Music has always played an important role in my life. I went to a gifted school for the arts for K-12 in kindergarten (New York) and then attended the Governor’s School for the Arts. I also attended college on a voice scholarship in Opera. I have always been involved in chorus, musicals and performing groups all throughout school. I have been interested in music since age 5 or 6.
Singing and performing have always brought me joy. I had two awesome chorus teachers Ms. Sandra Venters and Mr. Nultimier who helped to push me outside of my comfort zone, helped me grow and push through fear. They both inspired me and unlocked the passion for performing. This motivated me to audition and ultimately attend music on a voice scholarship. The one pivitol moment in my life, that led me to persue music professionally, was when I heard Mariah Carey sing “Hero.” After hearing her sing this iconic song, I just knew that this was the path for me and was my God-given ability and purpose in life to persue.
Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers
My name is Rina Chanel and I am a singer, songwriter, arranger, co-producer and International recording artist.
I was born in and lived the first 10 years of in Brooklyn, New York. Then my mom and I moved to Virginia Beach, VA.
I went to a gifted school for the arts for K-12 in kindergarten (New York) and then attended the Governor’s School for the Arts. I also attended college on a voice scholarship in Opera. Ever since I can remember, I have always been involved in chorus, musicals and performing groups since age 5 or 6.
I was always called Rina as a child by my family. For me, it is a name that is familiar and I naturally associate with love and hearing music at home. My second passion is my love for fashion, especially French designer Coco Chanel. I have always been a fan of this designer and brand forever. Her designs were always associated with sophistication, class and quality. For me putting the two together was a perfect fit as it combined both of my inspirations together – And that is how Rina Chanel was created.
I listen to a wide range of artists: From R&B and Soul to Jazz and Opera and a little of everything in between. Some of the current artists that I listen to are: HER, Soul Sonic, Kem, Snoh Aalegra, Ariana Grande, Maysa, Tori Kelly, Beyonce and Taylor Swift.
My favorite R&B and Soul artists are: Alicia Keys, Tamia, Chante Moore, Sade, Anita Baker, Michael Jackson,Prince, Tony Braxton, Teena Marie, Celine Dion, Babyface, Maxwell and Will Downing. I am also inspired by Jazz artists: Natalie Cole, Nat King Cole, Billie Holiday and Diana Krall; and even Opera singers such as Kathleen Battle, Denyse Graves, Renee Fleming and Anna Netrebko. The artists who have most Influenced me are: Sade, Anita Baker, Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston, Tamia, Babyface and Luther Vandross.
My music fuses smooth R&B vocals with various R&B era instrumental backings that highlight my unique sound and blends the best elements of Jazz, Soul and R&B, with a bit of pop. I hope that one day people associate my music as timeless classic soul and R&B.
I am very proud of the quality work that I have been fortunate to be able to put out and be associated with through my music partnership with Phillie-BOP Productions. My debut single “Worthy” was released in January 2020. The single debuted at #1 in Italy and Canada and at #22 on the UK Soul Top Chart. It received airplay rotation in the United Kingdom, Canada, Italy, Japan, Brazil; and Arizona, California, Ohio and Pennsylvania in the United States. Since then I have put out a total of 5 commercial singles that have all hit number one on various platforms and charts in Canada, Italy, and have charted at the top 10 in the United Kingdom, California and on other platforms. My current single “E.S.P.” just recently hit number in Canada.
I believe that through passion, faith, hardwork and persistence, that I was born to fulfill the purpose of making music. I have an equal desire to encourage others to the same thing. I hope my music motivates people to find the thing that they were destined to do. I am also a huge supporter of my fellow independent artists. At the end of the day no one is you and that is your superpower. I think everyone has a unique set of skills, abilities and gifts worth contributing to the world. Do what truly comes natural and organically to you and you can never go wrong.
I have been in love with singing in front of an audience since I was a young girl. There’s nothing like the feeling that I get when I perform live. When you get that immediate positive feedback from your audience while you are operating in your gift feels absolutely incredible. There’s really nothing like it. The high and joy that comes from making people smile, celebrate, and feel intense emotion through music. It’s the best feeling in the world to know that someone hopefully felt good, inspired and loved in that short space and time.
Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?
There was one point where I was scheduled to record some music with another artist. We recorded it and then was suppose to promote and do a compilation album. We were suppose to connect but something always keep coming up and getting in the way, like a constant barrier preventing us from ever completing anything. It ended up not being a good fit and I eventually had to just walk away, never really understanding what happened. This experience taught me to be more selective with whom I work with and to really listen to my spirit. If a situation or a person doesn’t sit right or feel right, it normally is a sign that it’s not a good fit. I learned to listen to my intution and trust my instincts from that point on and to never let anyone make you doubt your abilities.
Trust your gut and never, ever, ever give up. No matter the barriers, the reasons or who is telling you that you can’t. I strongly believe if you keep going and moving in the direction of your dreams, God will allow the right people and opportunies to find you. If you keep passionately and persistently working towards your music goals, even if making even small steps, it will eventually happen for you. That’s what ulitmately happened to me and I couldn’t be happier about it.
What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?
True freedom as an artist comes when you don’t care what anyone else think. You commit solely to your interpretation of the music. That creates an authentic experience for you as a performer and your audience. I just try to go out and take fear out of the equation and pretend that I’m at a function with all of my friends. I’m just here to have fun and make sure that I’m connecting with my audience. I love to see and hear that people are engaged by my vocal performances. I hope that they experience a range of emotions, mainly joy and happiness.. It gives me so much joy to see that people are having a positive experience and are having a good time.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://rinachanelmusic.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rinachanelmusic/?hl=en
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rinachanelmusic/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheRinaChanel?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCaGEFlqULu79M5M9PsVGOtw/featured
- Other: https://www.facebook.com/syrinawhite/ https://open.spotify.com/artist/3Vxlbac46VEnaZ360knkHu https://music.apple.com/us/album/sweetest-of-melody-feat-senghor-robinson-single/1588654754?uo=4 https://songwhip.com/rina-chanel
Image Credits
Josiah Mendoza