For all its turmoil, West Kingston has produced a number of notable figures, many of whom have excelled in entertainment. It is that positive side that Yeshie Renee prefers to highlight in her music.

The London-based singer recently filmed the music video for Commotion — one of her latest songs — in Denham Town, where she is from.

It is a dancehall jam, different in tone from the rootsy Give Thanks, another of her new releases.

“I am very comfortable doing both sounds as I consider myself a versatile artiste. I am from a Rastafarian household, both my mum and dad are Rasta, so I grew up listening a lot of reggae music. The dancehall side of me is influenced by my community, where I use to attend a lot of street parties and listen all the latest dancehall songs,” she said.

Before migrating to the United Kingdom at age 12, Yeshie Renee did community events in West Kingston, some of them alongside her brother Majah Bless, a deejay. She did similar events in London before finally releasing her first song, Ring Ring, four years ago.

Bring Back The Love, also released in 2019, is a collaboration with Majah Bless. The visuals for that song was also filmed in gritty West Kingston, which has produced acts like Ken Boothe, Gregory Isaacs and Errol Dunkley.

While she has lived in London for many years, Yeshie Renee (real name Rennae Wright) feels it is critical to project her roots through music.

“I believed that this was very important as that shows the audience a better picture of who Yeshie Renee is, what I represent and where I come from,” she said.