Sharissa: No Half Steppin'
May 2002
MVRemix: Whereabouts are you from?
Sharissa: I'm from the Bronx, I'm Brooklyn born, but I was born in the Bronx.
MVRemix: How did you begin?
Sharissa: I started singing in school, but more professionally I started by doing "backgrounds." I started through doing background vocals for Father MC, Beanie Sigel, Carl Thomas and Wyclef.
MVRemix: Is the glass half full or half empty?
Sharissa: Ooh, it's full. Half full, half full definitely because we have so much further to go baby. We out of here, we gonna keep it movin'.
MVRemix: What are your thoughts on the R. Kelly situation?
Sharissa: Wow, hey. That man knows what he did but we cannot judge him, only god's gonna judge that ass if it was him. Do you know what I mean?
MVRemix: So do you think it was, or wasn't?
Sharissa: I wouldn't put it past him, honestly. You can't put nothing past him, or anybody. I sure know them Catholic priests, I would love to say I don't believe that, but I would put nothing past no-one.
MVRemix: With "Any Other Night" you appear to have either moved on, or because the guy wasn't there, taken someone else instead. What was the premise of the song specifically, and what are your opinions on open relationships and/or infidelity?
Sharissa: Well, me, I think that if someone's not giving you what you need in a relationship that you should move on, because you'll never be happy and neither will he if you're not. But, infidelity, I don't like the way that goes down. A lot of times, we are involved in relationships that we are no longer happy in. Due to circumstances that we have some ties. But I believe that any ties can be broken, it's up to you to be strong enough to continue on. I don't like the open relationship theme. I'm sorry, I want mine. I'm not with sharing, I'm the eldest of seven and I've always been sharing. I'm not sharing my man though. I don't like it, we have to make some changes. I don't like that at all. I want mine, when I want mine, the same way you want yours.
MVRemix: Definitely, so what's the one thing you never leave home without?
Sharissa: My wallet. Haha. I'm sorry, I do not leave without my wallet. I can get anything I see in the street as long as I have my wallet.
MVRemix: What's the first thing you do when you wake up in the morning?
Sharissa: Haha, brush my teeth. Wash my face.
MVRemix: If you could see one person in concert who would it be?
Sharissa:
Ooh, Patti LaBelle.
MVRemix: Now, if you were introducing someone who didn't know anything of the R n'B genre to R n'B, how would you go about doing so? What would you show them?
Sharissa: A beautiful, acoustic song. I would just sing to a nice acoustic guitar, and they'd fall in love because chills would just run through their bodies. Haha. That's the way to go.
MVRemix: If there was one lost artist you could bring back for five minutes and talk to?
Sharissa: Lost artist? Wow, who would that be. [very short pause] Adina Howard! You remember her?
MVRemix: Definitely, yeah...
Sharissa: Oh my goodness...
MVRemix: What's your opinion on the state of RnB right now? Is it too commercially watered down, or is it at a good stage?
Sharissa: I think there's a little bit of both. I'm tired of these singers that are just [impersonates singing with little heart] - I want to sing! I want to hear [sings briefly, passionately]. We're part of that, don't you want somebody to really sing like Gladys Knight? Don't you want that back? You want to sing! I want to sing.
MVRemix: What's the biggest change in R n'B from the yesteryear to now? The way the people sing?
Sharissa: Yeah, the way they're singing and the way the people accept shit music because of programming. It's just like the more the radio stations play, the more you like it. And that's programming, that's also mental. It's evil. No disrespect to radio but all that is is programming.
MVRemix: Yeah, I find the mainstream sometimes sways things too much in the wrong direction too.
Sharissa: That's right.
MVRemix: Who would you say influenced you?
Sharissa: Definitely Stephanie Mills and The Emotions vocally. I still listen to them now, very influential in my career.
MVRemix: What about in the current day?
Sharissa: Faith Evans and Mary J., definitely. Yolanda Adams' singing is beautiful.
MVRemix: Do you spend much time with other genres of music? I know you're a Hip Hop fan, anything else frequent your ears?
Sharissa: Oh yeah, I'm a very big fan of Gwen Stefani. And I love Bob Marley, I've been listening to him a lot for years. I love Reggae music.
MVRemix: Would you ever do anything in that genre?
Sharissa: I've done some, I'm actually going to put on a show in Jamaica on the 27th where I'll perform a Reggae set.
MVRemix: How did you get involved with Kedar Massenburg and Bryce Wilson?
Sharissa: I met Kedar and Bryce through Jimmy Henchmen. I'm Jimmy Henchmen's artist. I'm a Henchmen/Motown artist. I met them through Jimmy, Bryce is one of Jimmy's producers, he's a Henchmen. Jimmy and Kedar go way back before the label's.
MVRemix: Do you ever freestyle sing?
Sharissa: Mmhmmm, definitely. Check out my mixtape, you can download it off of my website (www.sharissa.com)
MVRemix: Have you ever tried freestyling in rapping and if so, do you find that singing freestyling is harder than rapping or easier?
Sharissa: That's something that me and Jimmy always go through, when I freestyle I'm rhyming, but I'm singing. I believe that I'm singing, but, he says I'm rhyming. But, hey...I have the best of both worlds in that instance. I'm doing both without even knowing it.
MVRemix: Aside from the mixtape, have you ever gone to create a song, by using content that you've freestyled and it emerging as an actual track?
Sharissa: I did a song that when I was working with Father MC, turned out that way. I sang and I rhymed what I was rapping on the song.
MVRemix: What are you currently working on?
Sharissa: I just finished a movie, I just got back in from Cali. It's starring Toni Braxton, myself, Merlin Santana, Devon Love and Kirsten Powell. It's due to air on VH1 in June. June 26th exactly.
MVRemix: What's it about?
Sharissa: It's a Hip Hop story. I'll just say that it's like an East Coast/West Coast rivalry movie. Haha, that's how it goes down.
MVRemix: Any last words you'd like to put to fans and/or potential fans?
Sharissa: Yes, to stay focused and to take no shorts, that's why I tell them no half steppin'! Just go all the way.
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