Sharissa Dawes (born August 21, 1975) is an American singer. Born and raised in New York City's borough of

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

, she began her musical career in the girl groups Triple Dose and 4Kast. 4Kast released their 1998 debut album, ''Any Weather'', which was promoted with the singles "Miss My Lovin and "I Tried". After her time in the groups, Sharissa worked as a

backing vocalist A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are ...

before she was discovered by

Jimmy Henchman James Rosemond often known as Jimmy Henchman or sometimes Jimmy Henchmen, is an American entertainment record executive and convicted drug trafficker. Early life Rosemond was born in 1965, in Harlem, New York and grew up in Flatbush, Brooklyn, ...

. Her debut solo album, ''No Half Steppin (2002), peaked at number 44 on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart. Several of its songs appeared on other ''Billboard'' charts. Sharissa was featured the soundtrack of the 2003

romantic comedy Romantic comedy (also known as romcom or rom-com) is a subgenre of comedy and slice of life fiction, focusing on lighthearted, humorous plot lines centered on romantic ideas, such as how true love is able to surmount most obstacles. In a typic ...

film, ''

Love Actually ''Love Actually'' is a 2003 Christmas romantic comedy film written and directed by Richard Curtis. It features an ensemble cast, composed predominantly of British actors, many of whom had worked with Curtis in previous film and television p ...

''. Her second solo album, ''Every Beat of My Heart'' (2005), was only released in Japan. The singer has also contributed to several

compilation album A compilation album comprises tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one or several performers. If by one artist, then generally the tracks were not originally intended for rel ...

s, and has been featured on other artists' albums.

Life and career

1975–2001: Early life and career

Sharissa Dawes was born on August 21, 1975 in New York City's borough of

. Whitburn (2003): p. 46 She is the oldest of three children. Raised in the Bronx' Edenwald Projects, she became interested in music at age seven. When Sharissa was about 13, she performed with neighborhood children and sang in her school cafeteria. She was influenced by her mother's music collection (which included Deniece Williams and

Patti LaBelle Patricia Louise Holte (born May 24, 1944), known professionally as Patti LaBelle, is an American R&B singer, actress and businesswoman. LaBelle is referred to as the " Godmother of Soul". She began her career in the early 1960s as lead singe ...

), and recorded and studied televised music specials. Sharissa's father nicknamed her "Little

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris ( Judkins; May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, who is credited as a pioneer and influence by musicians across a range of genres that include rhythm and blues, pop, s ...

". Growing up, she felt pressure within the community: "People expected me to do nothing but have babies and depend on the system. I fought through all that." Sharissa joined the group Triple Dose as a teenager, and became part of the " urban vocal quartet" 4Kast in 1995. 4Kast released their debut album, ''Any Weather'' on October 13, 1998, on

RCA Records RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also ...

. Its

lead single A lead single (also known as a debut single) is the first single to be released from a studio album by an artist or a band, usually before the album itself is released and also occasionally on the same day of the album's release date. Release s ...

, "Miss My Lovin'", features

Mic Geronimo Michael Craig McDermon (born September 14, 1973, in Queens, New York), better known by his stage name Mic Geronimo, is an American rapper who was acquainted with Irv Gotti of Murder Inc. Gotti and his brother met Mic Geronimo at a Queens high ...

. Released as the second single on August 21, 1998, "I Tried" reached number 46 on the

Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by '' Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...

''Billboard'' chart on October 10, 1998. It remained on the chart for 12 weeks. To promote the album, the group performed as part of a fundraiser at

Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsylv ...

. Sharissa contributed "Bring Out The Freak" (featuring ILL Bread) to the 1996

, ''The Ultimate Mix.'' The following year, she released the solo single "Keep It Simple" through Emotive Music. Sharissa became a

for a number of singers, including

Wyclef Jean Nel Ust Wyclef Jean (; born October 17, 1969) is a Haitian rapper, musician, and actor. At the age of nine, Jean immigrated to the United States with his family. He first achieved fame as a member of the New Jersey hip hop group the Fugees, ...

Beanie Sigel Dwight Equan Grant (born March 6, 1974), better known by his stage name Beanie Sigel, is an American rapper from South Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He first became known for his association with Jay-Z and Roc-A-Fella Records, releasing his debut ...

Father MC Timothy Brown, also known as Father MC, is an American rapper who achieved success in the early 1990s on the Uptown Records label. Personal life Father MC appeared in the August 1996 issue of ''Playgirl'' in a photospread taken by Greg Weiner. ...

, and Carl Thomas. Three of her songs appeared on the 2001 compilation album, ''Bullet Proof Love, Vol. 1'': "Money Ain't Gonna Change Us" (including verses from The Prodigy and Bars-N-Hooks), "Gone 2 Long", and "I Can't Wait". Sharissa was also featured on Carl Thomas' "Cold, Cold Wind", on the compilation album ''BMG Dance Compilation #69'', that year.

2002: ''No Half Steppin

discovered Sharissa in November 2002. Her 2002 debut album, ''No Half Steppin''', was released through Henchmen and

Motown Motown Records is an American record label owned by the Universal Music Group. It was founded by Berry Gordy Jr. as Tamla Records on June 7, 1958, and incorporated as Motown Record Corporation on April 14, 1960. Its name, a portmanteau of ''moto ...

on February 26 of that year. Ayana Byrd of ''Vibe'' called its sound a "brand of gritty, hip hop-influenced R&B, and its lyrics revolve around tales of love, heartbreak, and independence"; according to

Bryce Wilson Bryce Wilson (born October 7, 1972) is an American record producer/ entrepreneur and actor. He was formerly half of late 1990s duo Groove Theory, and former artist on the early 1990s dance music/ electro hip-hop band Mantronix. Mantronix M ...

, the album was inspired by 1970s music. Jason Birchmeier of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Music ...

identified ''No Half Steppin as part of Motown's attempt "to break new artists into the urban market", and the label was presenting Sharissa in a style similar to Mary J. Blige and

Aaliyah Aaliyah Dana Haughton (; January 16, 1979 – August 25, 2001) was an American singer and actress. She has been credited for helping to redefine contemporary R&B, pop and hip hop, earning her the nicknames the "Princess of R&B" and " ...

. Other

music critics Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on w ...

also compared the singer to Blige. The album received mainly-positive reviews, although some criticized its production. It peaked at number 44 on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart on March 16, 2002 (remaining on the chart for 10 weeks), number seven on the

Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a music chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales in the United States and is compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The chart debuted as Hot R&B LPs in the issue dated ...

''Billboard'' chart and number 44 on the

Top Album Sales Top Album Sales is a music chart published by ''Billboard'' magazine starting in December 2014. It is a weekly chart documenting the best-selling albums on a weekly basis in the United States. Up until December 2014, this had been documented by th ...

''Billboard'' chart. Sharissa performed material from the album at the Blazin' Hip-Hop and R&B Concert in

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

on June 16, 2002, and released a

mixtape A mixtape (alternatively mix-tape, mix tape or mixed tape) is a compilation of music, typically from multiple sources, recorded onto a medium. With origins in the 1980s, the term normally describes a homemade compilation of music onto a cassette ...

version. "Any Other Nights

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing devic ...

was "the story of a woman getting her groove back after being neglected by her man". The single peaked at number 72 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart on April 6, 2002, remaining on the chart for 14 weeks. It reached number 21 on the

Adult R&B Songs The Adult R&B Songs chart (formerly called Adult R&B Airplay) is an airplay chart that is published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. The chart tracks and measures the airplay of songs played on urban adult contemporary radio stations, whose playl ...

''Billboard'' chart, number 23 on the R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay, number 23 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, and number 70 on the Radio Songs ''Billboard'' charts. The album's title track was also released as a single, and was promoted with a video. It peaked at number 75 on the

R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay (previously known as Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay) is a chart published by ''Billboard'' magazine that ranks the top R&B and hip hop songs in the United States, based on audience impressions from a panel of radio stations monitored ...

and number 78 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs ''Billboard'' charts. The third (and final) single from the album was "I Can't Wait". Sharissa was featured on "You Say Keep It Gangsta" with

Butch Cassidy Robert LeRoy Parker (April 13, 1866 – November 7, 1908), better known as Butch Cassidy, was an American train and bank robber and the leader of a gang of criminal outlaws known as the " Wild Bunch" in the Old West. Parker engaged in crimin ...

on Wyclef Jean's third studio album, ''Masquerade'', which was released on June 18, 2002. The singer featured on The Ranjahz's "Animal Life", from the album ''Say What You Say'', that year. She also played Yanesha in the 2002

television film A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...

, '' Play'd: A Hip Hop Story''.

Sociology Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of empirical investigation an ...

professor Geoff Harkness wrote in a 2015 article that Yanesha is an example of the bad-girl archetype, which he defined as "sexually insatiable females who emphasize their physical attributes and downplay other aspects of their identity". Harkness (2015): p. 173

2003–present: ''Every Beat of My Heart'' and continued career

On November 11, 2003, Sharissa contributed "Take Me as I Am" to the soundtrack of the 2003

film ''

''; it features Wyclef Jean. An accompanying music video was released. The song peaked at number 96 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs ''Billboard'' chart. Baria A. Razzaq of ''Vibe'' criticized the song: "Wyclef Jean misleads her into regurgitating one of his ditties from ''The Carnival'' era". Sharissa attended the film's New York City premiere.

EMI Music Japan , formerly , was one of Japan's leading music companies. It became a wholly owned subsidiary of British music company EMI Group Ltd. on June 30, 2007, after Toshiba sold off its previous 45% stake. Its CEO and president was Kazuhiko Koike. When ...

and

Virgin Virginity is the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. The term ''virgin'' originally only referred to sexually inexperienced women, but has evolved to encompass a range of definitions, as found in traditional, modern ...

released her second album, ''Every Beat of My Heart'', in Japan on October 25, 2005. The album was originally scheduled for a full release on September 27 of that year. Sharissa has co-writing credits on all its songs, and said about the process: "I can't sing about things that I haven't experienced, so it was important for me to work with producers who understood my struggle." Baria A. Razzaq praised the album for the collaborations with R. Kelly and

Millie Jackson Mildred Virginia Jackson (born July 15, 1944) is an American R&B and soul recording artist. Beginning her career in the early 1960s, three of Jackson's albums have been certified gold by the RIAA for over 500,000 copies sold. Jackson's songs o ...

. Singles from the album were "I'm In Love With a Thug", featuring R. Kelly, and "I Got Love". The track "You Can Do Better" reached number 28 on the Adult R&B Songs ''Billboard'' chart. Before ''Every Beat of My Heart'', Sharissa had released "Guess Who's Back", "See If I Won't", "You Make It Easy", "I'm Heat" and "Drop on Me" as singles. "I'm Heat" features verses by The Game, and "Drop on Me" includes verses by

The Notorious B.I.G. Christopher George Latore Wallace (May 21, 1972 – March 9, 1997), better known by his stage names the Notorious B.I.G., Biggie Smalls, or simply Biggie, was an American rapper. Rooted in East Coast hip hop and particularly gangsta ...

Sharissa designed a MaDame Bluez & Co. line of " street couture" in 2005 and participated in the

reality competition Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring unfamiliar people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 19 ...

show, ''Survive This!'' She performed at a

Masonic Temple A Masonic Temple or Masonic Hall is, within Freemasonry, the room or edifice where a Masonic Lodge meets. Masonic Temple may also refer to an abstract spiritual goal and the conceptual ritualistic space of a meeting. Development and history I ...

event in

Decatur, Illinois Decatur ( ) is the largest city and the county seat of Macon County in the U.S. state of Illinois, with a population of 70,522 as of the 2020 Census. The city was founded in 1829 and is situated along the Sangamon River and Lake Decatur in C ...

on February 17, 2006, to increase awareness of

HIV/AIDS Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual ...

. Sharissa's song, "Further", was included on the compilation album ''Dear Summer, Vol. 1'' the following year. She released "All or Nuth'n" in 2011 through the Assirahs Music Group.

Discography

Studio albums

Mixtape

As lead artist

As featured artist and other appearances

Other songs

Filmography

Notes

References

Citations

Book sources

* * *

External links

* {{Authority control 1975 births American contemporary R&B singers African-American women singer-songwriters 20th-century African-American women singers Living people Singer-songwriters from New York (state) People from the Bronx 21st-century American singers 21st-century American women singers Motown artists Virgin Records artists 21st-century African-American women