Jenna G

Jenna was a music fiend from an early age - both her parents were in bands and she grew up in a house surrounded by all sorts of musical influences. She first started presenting and DJ'ing on pirate radio at the tender age of 14. Here Jenna became inspired by underground sounds and hooked up with a group of MCs and DJs called Raggabeats Crew which turned into a hip hop group called Subliminal Darkness. After four years, Jenna left the group and began a residency at a night called Eardrum at DryBar which made her a name as a vocalist and MC. Singing with the bands at underground gigs introduced Jenna G to Darren and 2D, a drum & bass DJ and producer team called Future Cut, who were looking for a singer. The drum and bass trio Un-Cut was formed in 2000. A track called Borderline appeared on a Future Cut EP for Renegade Hardware and the response to it was incredible. What followed was a three year process of experimenting with ideas. Uncut's first white label Midnight sold out of its 10,000 copy run within weeks and drew a lot of attention from the music industry. In 2001 Un-Cut signed to EMI publishing and in June that year they signed to Warner's M Records. Their debut album came out in July 2003 with the re-release of its first single Midnight. After the band split, Jenna G continued singing and writing songs for EMI publishing which saw her working with So Solid's JD, Danni Minogue and Aleesha Dixon amongst others. It was during this time in London that she was picked up by the BBC's black music radio station, 1Xtra. Jenna first visited 1Xtra in the summer of 2003 with Uncut. She walked through the doors again in June 2004, not as an artist but as a DJ this time, broadcasting for a month on the Xtra Talent slot on Sunday nights/Monday mornings. 1Xtra was impressed by Jenna's presenting skills and put her together with Twin B, a Ministry records A&R man and mixtape producer from East London. The pair clicked immediately and in August 2004 Twin B and Jenna G gained a Saturday afternoon slot (12noon-2.00pm), a music show which sees grimy East London meet the soul of the north-west. Jenna G features on every DnB song accompanied with female vocals. In music Jenna is well known for her vocal and writing talents on a number of distinguished underground tracks in a number of genres but more prolifically in Drum n Bass, the genre of her own highly successful first solo album For Lost Friends released on the Bingo Beats record label March 2006. Tracks from the album were produced by a variety of prominent drum and bass producers such as Nu:tone, Kabuki, Friction, D Bridge, D KAY and TC1. Having gained a solo spot on the BBC's 1Xtra 2 years back, Jenna can be found every weekend morning bringing you a jam packed show of the best in black music, entertainment and a live listener generated request show. Guests on her film feature Lights Camera Action which airs every Saturday have included Beyonce, Quentin Tarantino, Josh Hartnett, Common, Paul Giamatti, Simon Pegg and Eli Roth to name a few. Her exploits in the press pits at premieres have caught the attention of Hugh Grant, Tenacious D, Drew Barrymore, Daniel Radcliffe, Sienna Miller, Michelle Pfeiffer and so many more! Check out the 1Xtra website for past interviews and pictures. Jenna G is currently the official vocalist for The Shapeshifters having appeared on their first album as songwriter and backing vocalist. The new album Do Not Disturb which features her songwriting and vocal talents is set for release in 2008 and has already spawned 2 releases 'Pusher' & 'New Day' On June 20, 2008 she along with Carrie Davis, Dev Griffin, Nick Grimshaw, Greg James, Aled Jones, Scott Mills and Dave Vitty sat the Radio 1 Maths Exam. Mark Chapman was due to sit the exam but pulled out at the last minute. The exam was an official GCSE Higher Maths Paper and they will receive their results in August along with everyone else.