BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – THE beautiful and talented Hailie-J, who the public first got a feel of when she competed in the Kittitian Superstar competition hosted by ZIZ’s ‘Chico’, is back with a new song and new attitude.
Her new song is titled ‘Much Stronger’ and she said it was derived from a real life experience with her former mate.
“So as soon as I got home that same morning, I was feeling a lot of raging emotions. I was feeling angry, hurt, disappointment, revenge and I usually write better with all those emotions trapped inside, and I was able to let it all out in 20 minutes,” she said.
Hailie-J, whose real name is Mahalia Davis, penned the song that was done on the ‘relationship riddim’ which originates from Jamaica.
She said the track was recorded at SKNE Studio by Kelvin ‘DJ Kells’ Christopher and indicated that people could definitely expect more from her.
Kittitian Superstar
In 2005, a shy reserved young lady, who had just turned sweet 16 and with the encouragement of friends, decided to showcase her talent by entering the popular ZIZ Kittitian Superstar.
The young woman, who went by the name Hailie-J, had a voice and singing style that reminded everyone of R/B Superstars Mya and Ashanti.
“Many thought that she would have won,” according to show creator St. Clair ‘Chico’ Guishard.
“During the radio auditions many persons thought that she would have won the show. The semi-finalists did a promotional performance on ZIZ and her performance was the best. I even remember during the semi-finals one of the judges, Miss Wall, saying that she was the best singer and definitely had talent.
Guishard said that her choice of song was bad and she fell ‘flat’.
“I think she has a bright future; she just has to develop her onstage confidence, choose songs that complement her voice and work on her performance,” he said.
Hailie said that she was a nervous wreck on the show.
“I never just get up and display my talent to the public. I’m not one for talent shows or competition, but it was encouraged by my friends to enter
“I was teased a little from those who did not know better as to my full potential, but on the plus side I became very popular and I developed fans. So I told myself I gotta do better than this. It’s my dream and it’s the one thing that makes me happy the most when I’m down, and I was determined to prove the public wrong and redeem myself,” she said.
It was Christopher who contacted her in 2007 during her final year in high school at the St. Theresa’s Convent High School.
“He informed me that he wanted to work with me and that he sees potential. However, at the time, I was in Miami on vacation so we set up an appointment to discuss my future in music. We started working immediately and my first official single was released.
‘I'm worth it’ tore up the local radio and landed Hailie several stage show performances.
“The public renamed it the ‘hot hot’ song,” she said.
Much Stronger
Hailie said that overcoming her fears is something she has been dealing with over the years.
“That has been my battle for the past years, to come out of my nervous/shy habits and feel more confident in myself and grow as a person and, more importantly, as a strong successful black woman.
“People have been in fact asking about my music…if I’m done with it. However, during that period I was going through life's learning lesson and I took the time out to grow as a woman and learn from my mistakes,” she said.
The now 21-year-old said she still goes to the studio and record tracks that reflect what she is feeling and experiencing.
“By the time I’m done, I feel relieved because I am able to express myself in that way. Yes, this is definitely a comeback for me and everyone can keep an eye out cause you never know what I’m gonna do next,” she said.
