It has been just over a week since Natalie made her debut as the newest artist for The Black Jetty Project with her song “Perfect”. The song received over 10,000 plays in the first week, with an international listenership breaking the US, UK, and other markets as far as China. ‘Perfect’ continues to be a favourite among listeners and is rising up the iTunes chart.
The Black Jetty hosted a listening party for the artist on Tuesday, 6th January, at the beautiful Villas at Sheriva in West End, Anguilla. Sheriva boasts award-winning luxury villas locally owned by Anguillian entrepreneur Sheridan Smith. In attendance were the artist’s manager, Rebecca Webster, family and close friends of the artist, as well as supporters, partners and the creators of The Black Jetty Project. In a presentation, Denecia Niles, songwriter for the project noted, “I was formally introduced to Natalie through her manager a year ago, and quickly figured out how great of a singer she is. Many of you know Natalie the daughter, the sister, the cousin, but tonight I would like for you to recognize her as Natalie, the artist. It’s not easy for someone to wake up one day and decide that they will become an artist. Natalie has done that, and I am proud of the step she has taken, to follow her dream and reach her full potential as an artist.”
She went on to say, “It is amazing when you can place yourself in a creative space and not be judged. I say this because many of our young people are judged too quickly. If you were to place them in a place like Miami, Atlanta or LA, they would be stars. So we should not be quick to write off those young people among us with extraordinary talents, character, charm and outgoing personalities.”
Natalie received well wishes and a huge outpouring of support from the many attendees, and an emotional Natalie expressed her gratitude to everyone who helped her with this new and exciting journey. As a mantra she holds the words “Just do it” close to her heart. Natalie left everyone with the special message that they should follow their hearts, and if there is something that creates happiness for them, they should not be afraid to explore it.
Natalie, age 21, was born in St. Thomas. She graduated from the University of the Virgin Islands in 2014, and currently lives in Florida. She is the daughter of Ethne & Nathaniel Hodge of Junks Hole, Anguilla. Connect w/ Natalie on social media via FaceBook: Natalie | Twitter & Instagram: @nattyaxa.
The song “Perfect” is available for purchase on iTunes, GooglePlay , AmazonMusic, CDBaby & Spotify. Listen to “Perfect” on SoundCloud.com/blackjettyproject.
The Black Jetty is an independent music project focused on artist development and a songwriter’s collective, with a team of producers and network of independent artists and lifestyle brands. As a branding group one of the creators’ main objectives is to make the project more accessible locally, regionally and internationally. They have also endorsed and promoted their international reggae fusion artist Oriel and his band, The Revoluters, under Afar Music Group. Visit www.theblackjetty.com to listen to and purchase music from The Black Jetty’s artists. For inquiries email: theblackjettyproject@gmail.com. Connect w/ the project on Twitter & Instagram: @theblackjetty. Hashtags #blackjettyproject #blackjetty #blacknotes.
– Contributed
(Published without editing by The Anguillian newspaper.)
