The Jamaica Observer’s Entertainment desk continues its daily 2016 Year In Review with people who made an impact during the year.
NICKEISHA BARNES
TEN years ago, Nickeisha Barnes became a familar face after placing second in the Digicel Rising Stars Competition.
She went off the radar for some time, but returned in 2013 with a debut album called Wounded In Love.
This year, she released an EP, Layers of My Soul, and the ballad Rock of Ages. The latter was released in November.
She told the Jamaica Observer that she sees the Saunjay Kerr-produced song as a potential hit.
“As a songwriter, I am not necessarily looking for a ‘breakout song’, but I can feel the special air that Rock Of Ages has about it. As a singer, performing on stage, there is a bigger connection happening with the audience with this song, and it tells me that it has mass appeal and can be a song to last for the ages,” she said.
Rising Star has produced bona fide stars in former winners Christopher Martin and Romain Virgo. Though not desperate to become a major artiste, Barnes believes she broke new ground this year.
“I would describe 2016 as a year of growth where I am making strides as a recording artiste. It has been a year of pruning for me as a singer/songwriter, where my team and I have learned some solid business practices as to our way forward in establishing my product as one of quality,” she said.
— Simone Morgan-Lindo