Yessonia is a ‘Burna Gurl’

Born Sonia Shalukeni, the artist known as Yessonia brings something new to each of her projects.

Her previous single, ‘Bonnie and Clyde’, featured Don Kamati while her newest offering, ‘Burna Gurl’, has a distinctly different sound and fans are crazing about it.

She compares her latest track to the work of Nigerian singer and rapper Burna Boy, who is one of Africa’s biggest and most successful artists.

“The song is very personal to me because it speaks to my experiences in the game as an upcoming artist, and it reflects the inspirational fire that burns within me,” she says. The music video for the track, shot in Windhoek, includes plenty of beauty shots, says Yessonia.

“The driving concept is the ‘Garden of Eden’ and working on the video was the most exhausting project I’ve done so far. We started shooting in November 2020 and finished only in August this year.”

She recorded the song on the first day of curfew, says Yessonia. “I was so stressed that the song was not done. I needed to finish it and could not get home. We did not sleep that night. We worked through until the morning. Besides everything, it was a good experience,” she says.

Her aim is to inspire others to pursue their dreams despite setbacks and challenges.

“It’s my perspective of what and how the Namibian music and entertainment industry works. It’s not as rosy as one may expect. It’s vicious and a cut-throat environment full of hypocrisy. I say this because the same people that say ‘hey we got your back’, and smile all the way to your dining table won’t even lift a finger to point you in the right direction. They will do all it takes to keep you out,” she says.

She feels strongly that it’s important, in the industry, to have each other’s backs, and have legit intentions.

“It would lead to a prosperous industry.” Yessonia would love to follow in the footsteps of African giants of entertainment like Burna Boy and South African comedian Trevor Noah.

“They have inspired me the most. No matter how long it takes or how hard it gets, even if the deck is stacked against you, keep pushing because there are possibilities on the other side of impossible. Years ago the idea of an African entertainer being a global star was almost far-fetched, but today we have African stars on the Billboard Hot 100!”

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