Nyasia

The words and music move my soul: Nyasia

Where is Nyasia from?
She was born in West Palm Beach, Florida, but she grew up and lives in New York City.

How did she get that name?
After a friend of her friend died of Leukemia, he had asked her to honor the deceased friend by changing her name around a bit to form her stage name. It’s now also her legal name.

What were her releases?
While her biggest hit is probably “Who’s Got Your Love,” she also had hits with “Now and Forever,” “I Feel the Way U Do,” “Don’t Waste My Time,” “I’m the One,” “Midnight Passion,” “Take Me Away,” and “Two Time Lover.”

How did Nyasia get started in music?
It started as a favor for a friend who needed a dancer for one of his groups which included Willie Valentin of Artistik Records and Michael Bertot, author of “Now & Forever.” At a Hispanic Worlds Fair, in New York, she was seen dancing and asked if she could sing. She auditioned for Nelson Cruz, who took the recording of her audition to MicMac Records. To this day, Nyasia gives him a lot of credit for her career’s start.

Didn’t she make most of her hits for MicMac?
Yes, indeed. Because that label gave her the first boost in her career, she stayed loyal to MicMac longer than other artists. When MicMac closed down, she was surprised.

Who produced most of her music?
Actually, she has worked with a wide variety of producers, including Nelson “FFWD” Cruz, Mauro P. Desantis, Mickey Garcia, Charlie “Rock” Jimenez, Mike Lorello, Elvin Molina, Ellis Pacheco, and Willie “Valentin” Rivera. She wants to work with Chris Barbosa and Carlos Berrios. She has no favorite, and each has taught her something different.

Can you give an example?
While in the studio recording “Stronger Together,” her insecurity caused her to think couldn’t hit one of the notes. Well, Elis Pacheco screamed, “You’re an Artist, you better hit that note!!!” That scared her into singing that note and even today she uses that moemnt to inspire her to reach for those otherwise impossible notes.

Why did she choose Freestyle music?
She said that the words and music move her soul, and Freestyle music represents friendships, passion, happiness, love, good times, and great memories. Even so, she loves so many different types of music.
“Stronger Together” was a duet with David.

Has she done other duets?
Yep. She also duetted with George Anthony, and would love to have the chance to sing with Sa-Fire (her favorite artist), George Lamond, Coro, Adam Marano, and TKA.

Who was her label after MicMac?
She joined Florida outfit X-Clusive Records. For them she released “I Feel the Way U Do” in 1996. But it was not a very big hit because it was not promoted well. Strong differences between Nyasia and X-Clusive caused them to part ways.

Then what happened?
Between 1997 and 2001, she was sorting out her personal life. She moved to her birthstate of Florida to try to find herself and inner peace. That did not last long, as she returned to New York to give birth to her baby boy.

Didn’t she make a comeback in 2001?
That’s right. She released a song, “True Love,” on Artistik Recordings. She was glad to work with her fictive big brother Willie Valentin again.

What are her favorite Freestyle songs?
She has a lot of them, including Sa-Fire’s “Let Me Be the One,” Johnny O’s “Fantasy Girl,” by and “Please Stay Tonight” by Judy Torres. Even though Freestyle Music went underground, she knows that it will return someday, as long as the producers are willing to make new sounds that are different from the classics.

What does she do during the day?
While she still performs music at night, she is a mother and she works for a software company during the day.

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