Bonnie Lin wants to take over dancehall

Budding artiste Bonnie Lin says that her sound, which embodies a vibrant fusion of life experiences, creativity and raw island energy, is what dancehall and the universe needs right now.

"I'm just a girl from Portmore with big dreams, want tek ova dancehall and want my talent to be heard all over the world," Bonnie Lin told THE STAR.

"One thing about me, I never wanted to be the same as everyone else - I always wanted to stand out and have my own lane and not be compared to anyone in music. It [my journey] hasn't been hard but it hasn't been easy either. I'm just very selective with the types of beats I sing on and the type of sound that I want. Sol,tgf if the riddim speaks to me and a my style, mi wi voice on it," she said.

The artiste, who officially broke onto the scene in 2018, has been racking up a slew of tracks with a musical blend of R&B/dancehall sound, infused with reggae and Afrobeat music. Among her most popular singles are Pretty&Bad, Fly Away and Celebrate. She has also secured a seductively teasing collaboration with Najeeriii, titled In My Arms, and displayed her versatility on the hardcore dancehall track, Bang Fi Real, featuring Ymo G.

Drawing her musical influences from dancehall acts Shenseea and Shaneil Muir, while taking reggae lessons from Protoje and Lila Ike, Bonnie Lin is also spreading her musical prospects towards the Latin/Spanish market. However, she's adamant that ,despite her blends and infused musical appetite, she will forever remain "authentic".

"When people listen to your music, they don't know you as a person. But them listening to your music and you being authentic in it, that's how they'll get to know you and relate to your music as well. So it's 100 per cent important. [Being authentic] in my music, I definitely feel more of a connection to [my fans] because they'd come to me and seh 'Mi love dis, dis mek mi cry' or tell me how dem can relate to my music because I'm being authentic," said Bonnie Lin.

Bonnie Lin said that she used to only write music for fun, but losing loved ones last year brought a change.

"So dat forced me fi put what I was going through in my music because that was the only way I could express myself. From there, I kinda shift my music and be a little bit more expressive. Yes I'm gonna have fun as well but I want to be more expressive," said the artiste.

Growing up, Bonnie Lin shared, she was always nurtured with "love and support" by an extended family unit who has always been her tower of strength, especially now while fulfilling her musical dreams.

"Music has always been my first choice because I started performing at school on fun days and, when I told my parents I wanted to do music, they were like 'Hey, understand that I'll support but yuh affi guh college, yuh affi get supm in case it nuh work out,'" she laughed. "So my backup plan fi mek mi parents happy was my degree in hospitality and tourism management."

She explained that her moniker is derived from her surname, Bonner, which was then merged with the latter part of her mother's surname - Rodlin.

She said that the music space is not always kind and fair, especially to female artistes.

"If it's a man and a producer link him and seh 'Yow mi waah work wid yuh', him really waah work, but if him link you as a female yuh affi be very sceptical. I've been in situations already where a producer locked me in him studio and a when mi tear dung di door him a seh he was joking with me. Suh those are some of the things females affi guh through just suh wi can get a song. You're being disrespected, man a look yuh, suh yuh don't know if dem intentions are genuine and it's harder to 'get a strength'," she opined.

However, with a strong, supportive team around, challenging her talent and creating a secured path for her success, Bonnie Lin said she's ready to enlighten her supporters on the message of "gratitude" through her lyrical flows.

"Just shifting your mindset and your perspective can literally change yuh life, yuh mood and everything; suh I want to tell ma fans to be grateful and always focus on the positive. Once you're doing those things in life, everything else will fall in place. So I want everyone to listen to my music and just be grateful in life," said Bonnie Lin.