| Kwanza Jones | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Los Angeles, United States |
| Genres | pop/rock |
| Occupations | singer, songwriter, actress, music producer, philanthropist, CEO |
| Years active | 2001-present |
| Labels | Innovation Entertainment |
| Website | kwanzajones.com |
Kwanza Jones is an American pop singer/songwriter. She was born in Los Angeles, California and started her singing career when she was in college at Princeton University. She is currently signed to the independent label "Innovation Entertainment".
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Kwanza was born in Los Angeles, California on Thanksgiving Day.
At the age of four Kwanza’s family moved to the suburbs of Washington, D.C. where she spent her formative years playing flute, violin, piano and singing in the choir at her school and church. Her paternal great-grandmother played piano for famous blues singer Bessie Smith in the 1920s.
She studied at Princeton University, in Princeton, New Jersey. At this time she was in an a cappella group, was a soloist in the gospel choir and was even in an electronica band. She had a chance meeting with music legend Quincy Jones which got her interested in music as a profession.
After her first album, she moved back to Los Angeles to continue her career.
She wrote her first album Naked when she was attending Princeton University. At this time, she played a lot in bars and other small venues. Her biggest performance during this time was at the World Famous Apollo Theater in New York.
When she graduated she decided to travel a little and wrote her second album Naked 2: universal fire. Along with original material, this album also featured two cover songs, The Doors' "Light My Fire" and Ashford & Simpson's "Ain't No Mountain High Enough".[1]
When she arrived back in the US, she moved to Los Angeles to find her roots and continue her music career.
Kwanza Jones' song "Think Again" earned her first appearance on the Billboard (magazine) charts. She debut at #47 on the Billboard Hot Dance / Club Play Charts. In December 2010, it was #3 on the Biggest Jump list . "Think Again - The Remixes" is a Dance project featuring the single, "Think Again" where Kwanza collaborated with [[Grammy Award]|Grammy]] nominated American DJ/producer/remixer, Mike Rizzo. Also working with her on this project was DJ Lynnwood and Jaime J Sanchez. This project has a slated internet release of November 26, 2010.[2]
Before January 2010, Kwanza joined the likes of Sinéad O'Connor, Beyoncé Knowles and Mary J. Blige (to name a few) in support of Girls Educational and Mentoring Services (GEMS). The most recent campaign from this organization, "Girls Are Not for Sale", is a national campaign aimed at raising awareness to and ending the growing issue of state-side sex trafficking.[3]
Kwanza is currently recording her third studio album called, Supercharged.
| Released | Title |
|---|---|
| 2001 | Naked |
| 2005 | Naked 2: universal fire |
| 2011 | Supercharged |
| Released | Title |
|---|---|
| 2005 | Victim of the System |
| Released | Title | Peak positions | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Billboard Dance/Club Chart | |||
| 2009 | "Everything Around You" | - | |
| 2010 | "Not a Breakup Song" | - | |
| Nov. 2010 | "Think Again - The Remixes" | 21 | |