Rap Artist Shaina P

"She is very talented that is for sure; man, she chased me DOWN until I took the time to look and listen to her first video. She is Shaina P, Bitch!"

That is the description given of rapper Shaina P by Elaine Larson, CEO of 100% Connections and the woman that was a huge part of the start of Shaina's career. That tenacity shown in getting herself listened to carried over into the rest of her career in both music and life.

The 22-year old mother of one (the absolutely adorable 4-year old Delianna) is not only one of the hottest newcomers on the rap scene in Wisconsin, she is also on the hottest hairstylists in the area, having just graduated from the prestigious Paul Mitchell School. She combined her love for both, writing and performing the song "Going Forward" for her graduating class.

The young Native American is ready to take the world by storm, and with the backing of Eternal Tribez, she has the moxie, talent and the drive to succeed.

After all, she IS Shaina P, Bitch.“


            When did you first fall in love with music?

When I was in middle school, I did a lot of choir stuff. And then as I got in to High School, (Oneida), we had our cultural Iroquois music classes. That is what I started off doing. When I started recording, which was with a company called Industry Works, I sang one song, and he introduced me to rap. And ever since then, that is what it has been. I was 19 when that happened.

            What made you switch to rap?          

I liked my sound when I did rap. It is more upbeat and a lot more fun for me than singing is.

            Who are your music influences?

I don’t really have any. A lot of people ask me that. I like different aspects of everybody. If I HAD to say someone specific, I would have to say Missy Elliott.  She is a bigger girl, but she still did her thing and she didn’t care; she would admit it. And she really has a different sound to her.

            What do you want people to hear in your music?

Just that I am a young, native woman and I am bringing this music to the forefront. That’s it.

            How would you describe your music?

A lot of my music is true stuff. Some of it is just about stepping out and having fun, but in a few of my songs, you can hear the strength and the sadness of my life because it is true stuff.

            You are making a mix tape of your all-time favorite songs. What is the first song and why?

Out of my own songs, it would probably be one of my new songs coming out called ‘Talk About Me’, because it is about myself not really caring what anyone thinks.

Best performance you ever gave?

For me, my best performance was probably my very first one. Not only just the fact that I GAVE it, but the great feedback I received for it. The power that I felt from the crowd was just amazing. It was at RePlay in DePere.

            Worst performance you ever gave?

One where NO ONE WAS THERE!!! (Laughing) There was like maybe five stragglers in the bar. But that was with my old manager, so that was kinda normal with him. He didn’t run his business very professionally. He would do weak advertising for shows, like only make flyers and that was it. Nothing else.

            What artist, alive or dead, would you want to do a song?

I would probably have to choose Left Eye (of TLC). Considering the group she was in, she has always stood out to me. I was little when I listened to her; my sisters would listen to her. I never knew her name when I was younger, but I would tell them I want the girl that “goes fast”. She just always had a different sound to me.

            One song that describes your life?

A song called ‘My Own Sound’. It was released on my first mix tape. IT basically tells about me and my background.

            What are some the good things about music scene in this area?

One of the good things in this area is everybody knows everybody. All the different music labels always work together and make things better for each other. My birthday party is coming up and Eternal Tribez, 100% Connections, Blitz Squad are all coming together to support each other. I think that is the best thing we can have for each other; support from each group.

What are some of the things that you think could be improved?

We need more venues. We don’t have a lot of places that hip hop and rap artists can perform at because of the public. There are a lot of fights going on and the venues are starting to shut down doing hip hop shows. There are like maybe three or four places that let us do shows around here now.

            You just recently won an award at the Dubceez Artist Appreciation Awards.

I won the ‘Hottest Newcomer for 2012’ award. It was actually a surprise that I was even nominated. I didn’t know the fan base was that big for me. Once that happened, I pushed that like wildfire. It was everywhere. It was a lot of fun.

            What was your first concert?

My dad took me and sister to see Jessica Simpson. I was 10 years old.

            Where do you get your inspiration when you are writing?

Half of it is from the beat; how the beat sounds. The rest is from what kind of song I want based on what is going on around me at the time.

            Your new mix tape is called ‘Talk About Me’. Tell me about that.

My first was called ‘My Shine’. That was my coming out party. I wanted that spotlight. This one, I want people really getting me there and spreading the word about Shaina P. I have had stuff happen with my old manager and he is throwing some things out there now, really hating on me, so I am like ‘talk about me, I don’t care’.

            Tell me about Eternal Tribez.

Eternal Tribez is run by Kevin Peters. I met him when I was cage cashier at the Oneida Casino, he was the shift leader. At that time I was just recording for fun, I wasn’t doing shows or anything. I gave him my CD and a couple weeks after that, we teamed up and started doing bigger things. I was with ET for a while, and that was when I met Jay from Midwest Entertainment. I went from ET to Midwest for about a year, and then Jay started slipping, and Kevin let me come back home to ET.

            Moving forward, what do you want to gain out of this business?

I want to get respect as a female artist. I know I have a lot of that already, but a lot of people think because we are females, we can’t do it. I have been questioned before about how I feel about competition with the other female artists around here. I don’t really feel there is competition, but I do feel that there is….not really jealously, but there is something there where you have to be dominating in this. That is pretty much what I want. Respect as a female artist.