We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Sheniqua Shanklin a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Sheniqua, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.
The Biggest risk I’ve ever taken was on myself. When I had my 2nd child in 2017 it was a life or death event for my family and I. I spent 3 days in ICU after recieving a transfusion of all the blood in my body after a hemorrhage. Once I was home and healing I started going through this transformation of body, mind, and spirit. Without getting to spooky, when you have a near death experience it does something to your outlook on life. The sun shines brighter, flowers smell sweeter ; I mean all the little things in life matter so much more. Obviously being home I had a lot more time to think about my music and my brand . What I was doing before just wasn’t going to cut it. So I decided to change everything about my brand that was previously known. I had never really went all in and fully believed in myself before hand but this time I had to. That meant digging into all my musical ability despite peoples opinions of what I should be doing with my talent. AND ITS WORKING!!! Taking this risk on myself was the best thing Ive ever done for myself. It’s helped me to heal emotionally, physically, mentally, and spiritually. Ive gotten to know myself better because I chose to put down the familiar and pick up my bag to journey into the unknown.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
People that have known me for years have asked me ” Who is EYDN”? I always tell them remember that time I almost died, lol. Yeah that’s Eydn . Its a place of being, a starting point, the beginning of thing, a resting place, the place you should want to be, the place you were always meant to be. and that’s where I am. I got into music as a small child singing at church and school. I’m a southern girl that’s where we learn our chops. that’s the place you get to show everybody what you’ve been working on at home so-to-speak. Fast forward to now I put out my first R&B\Soul single called” Glitter” in 2019 which was pivotal for me because that was my first self produced, written and recorded single I’ve ever done. I don’t call myself a producer at all, lol but I do know what I want to hear.
Through these Covid years Ive gained an appreciation for taking it slow. A lot of artist are looking to be “booked and busy” but in all actuality its stressful and not healthy. My motto has been “Quality over Quantity”and that’s exactly what Ive gotten to do. Being resourceful and building relationships takes you along way.
Is there mission driving your creative journey?
Wellness. People deal with so much crap. some of us are born into crap only to pile on more crap as we meet people and then there’s still more foolishness. But if we start somewhere learning how to heal maybe just maybe the cycle will start to breakdown. Im not talking world peace but I am talking the simplicity of life just being better that you were yesterday. If we can hear a song that pin points a specific moment in time or provokes a thought that’s how we get there. That’s the vehicle that turns us in the right direction.
What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?
The most rewarding part of being a creative for me is when people tell me after show how my music touched them. How they feel when listening to my songs. I Love that. That’s the Goal!! I want people to feel empowered and free. I want people to think over their life and ask can I change this or that about myself to be better. Or maybe recognize that they are the person I’m talking about in the song.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.justeydn.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/justeydn
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/officiallyeydn
- Youtube: https://youtu.be/2vQnrwSeZnU
Image Credits
Jeff Paxton ( yellow dress Jordan black (red scene)