Breath of Life Records presents…. Shelea!

When Shelѐa was born, her parents realized that she was destined to do something big in music. This strong impression prompted her father to give her the middle name of Melody. Shelѐa began piano lessons at the age 7. By the time she was 14, she was playing in church services. She later attended the esteemed Oakwood College, where other luminaries such as Take 6 and Brian McKnight have studied. After graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in Music with an emphasis in piano, she returned to the Los Angeles area to further develop her music skills.

During a recording session, Shelѐa caught the attention of fellow alumnus, Brian McKnight. He introduced her to Damon Thomas and Harvey Mason Jr. of the Underdogs. This meeting led to collaborative songwriting on numerous projects. Shortly thereafter, she met Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis and subsequently became a songwriter/background vocalist for their production company, Flyte Time. Her voice is heard on several movie and television projects such as: A Shark’s Tale, Hotel Rwanda, Be Cool, Akeelah and the Bee, Cheetah Girls, All of Us, and the Will and Grace Soundtrack. She also sang background vocals for artists such as: Usher, Jessica Simpson, Kelly Rowland, Diana DeGarmo, Yolanda Adams, Monica, Fantasia, and Heather Headley. This rich musical experience prepared Shelѐa to later write and produce three songs for Chante Moore’s album, Love the Woman.

Take 6’s three-time Grammy nominated album, The Standard, featured Shelѐa singing “Someone To Watch Over Me”. This track instantly became a radio favorite; catching the attention of legendary, Stevie Wonder. She was invited to perform with Stevie for his annual Christmas Benefit Concert at the Nokia Theatre. This opportunity opened the door for Shelѐa to sing her original song “I Believe”, for three Inaugural events for President Barak Obama. Take 6 invited her on their latest Christmas album, The Most Wonderful Time of the Year, to close out their project with “Christmastime is Here”.

With the release of the Jumping the Broom Soundtrack in early 2011, many people were exposed to Shelѐa’s unique vocal stylings and music. She not only wrote and performed “Love Fell On Me” in the movie; but her composition was used as the primary score for the film. As a result of this movie soundtrack’s success, the internet began to buzz about this “new” talent to the music industry. The Twitter-sphere was tweeting so heavily that when Sherri Shepherd of The View was looking for “that special song” for her wedding, thousands of her Twitter followers suggested that she contact Shelѐa. Shelѐa was honored to perform an original composition, “I’m Sure It’s You”, written three years prior for her own wedding. The bridal party and attendees were blown away by Shelѐa’s passion, artistry and pure vocal talent.