Souljah Fyah front-woman Janaya Ellis had plenty of strong female role models to look up to while growing up in the 1970s.
Jamaican singers Rita Marley, Marcia Griffiths, and Judy Mowatt “in my eyes, were very regal and respected,” said Ellis, who performs with her Juno-nominated reggae band at a CD release party Friday, Dec. 3 at The Vat in Red Deer.
“I remember the way they always dressed in African prints . . . ”
The singer also known as “Sista J” is less enamoured of the female images her daughter is seeing, which tend to be either overtly sexual or merely fluffy.
Whenever her six-year-old watches Hannah Montana, Ellis joked that she feels like renting a Women and Rastafarianism video “so she can see for herself that you don’t have to give up your power — that you can embrace your power.”
Of course, embracing her power is the reason singer Christina Aguilera gave for wearing “butt-less chaps,” added the Edmonton singer, who understands there’s power in sexuality, and that sex sells.
“I really get it . . . but you see it differently when you have a daughter.”
Ellis once wore camouflage overalls on stage to command respect and present an alternative to the sex-pot image that permeates the entertainment industry.
She’s since come around to celebrating her femininity in skirts and long dresses. And ironically, Ellis said it was her pink-clad, Hannah-Montana-loving daughter who helped her discover this middle ground.
“She taught me how to be a girl or woman . . . I’m still trying to be strong. But it’s like, this is what strong looks like. You can still respect yourself.”
Since forming in 2001, Souljah Fyah has been more than a dance hall band — for a reason.
“The roots of reggae are very political,” said Ellis, who believes this has been confused over the years with motherhood messages of togetherness and love because of the laid-back party vibe of reggae music.
The feel-good rhythms help make the political messages palatable, said the singer, who’s tackled serious subject matter in her songs. But only intent listeners will realize Tears of a Fool or Dirty Hands, off the band’s new I Wish CD, are about domestic violence and child sex abuse.
That’s OK with Ellis, who wants people to enjoy her music, whatever they get out of it.
“My songs remain true to the reggae sound and the political messages, but they are mixed with an uplifting theme. “They are all very hopeful.”
The 37-year-old, who grew up in Edmonton in a bi-racial family (her father is from Trinidad and her mother is of Scottish-Irish ancestry), is expecting her second child in February.
The band — including Ellis’s drummer husband Dorant Ricketts, keyboardist Norm Frizzell, percussionist Bongbiemi Nfor, and guitarist and bassist Paul Joosse — timed the CD release tour so it ends with a New Year’s Eve performance in Edmonton, well before her due date.
While this tour sticks close to home, Ellis hopes to one day perform in Toronto, where Souljah Fyah has never played, but where the band has a solid fan-base — especially since winning Top Reggae Band at the 2009 Canadian Reggae Music Awards.
For more information about Souljah Fyah performing at The Vat, call 403-346-5636.
lmichelin@www.reddeeradvocate.com