Shontelle

Blending pop sensibilities with infusions of R&B, reggae, and hip-hop, Shontelle works as both vocalist and tunesmith. She first drew attention by co-authoring the empowerment anthem "Roll It Gal" for Alison Hinds and later supplied the revenge fantasy "Man Down" to another Barbadian, Rihanna. Among her own successes stand the 2008 single "T-Shirt," which reached number 36 in the U.S. and number six in the U.K., and the 2010 release "Impossible," which climbed to number 13 stateside and again placed inside the British Top Ten. Operating independently during the 2020s, she has issued fresh material that includes the theatrical ballad "Remember Me" and Coco & Breezy's popular club remix of "Impossible."

Recognition arrived in 2005 when Shontelle, born Shontelle Layne, wrote Alison Hinds' Barbadian hit "Roll It Gal." That achievement caught the ear of SRP, the artist development firm that had discovered Rihanna—an acquaintance from Shontelle's army-cadet days—and led to a contract with the Universal-distributed SRC imprint. Her first album, Shontelligence, appeared in November 2008 and received renewed promotion the next February; from it came "T-Shirt," her initial solo hit. No Gravity arrived in September 2010, shortly before Rihanna's Loud, which contained the Shontelle co-write "Man Down." The second album produced the further success "Impossible." Plans for a third project were soon underway yet never reached completion.

After scattered featured spots and isolated tracks for the rest of the decade, Shontelle stepped up her output as an independent artist with several singles in 2020 and 2021. These included uptempo cuts such as "House Party" alongside the dramatic "Remember Me" and the aforementioned remix of "Impossible," which rapidly exceeded half a million streams.