Shayna Zaid - A Malaysian Singing Sensation In New York.

The name Shayna Zaid may not sound familiar to Malaysians, but the 22-year-old heartthrob has made a breakthrough in New York after releasing her debut album, Beyond Borders last February. The R&B/Soul genre album has made her name on par with other international female stars.

Shayna will be releasing her second album, which will be produced by The OZONE Production in New York, soon. Lyrics in some of her songs will have a mixture of Bahasa Melayu and English. There will be a new approach in her second album where traditional and modern music elements will be combined. "I have waited a long time to work on a project such as this because I am proud of our traditional instruments and it is a satisfaction for me to be able to introduce our culture overseas," she said.

Shayna has been in the industry ever since she was six years old. She still stays in Malaysia where she is active in theatre and singing. She was 14 years old when she got involved in a play at the Actor's Studio and was also a model for commercial advertisements before she started singing with the likes of Faradhiya and the Phat Family.

Just as she was on her first few steps towards fame, her family decided to move to the United States six years ago. There she persevered to achieve her dream of being a singer.

She enrolled herself at the Berklee College of Music in Boston.It was in that famous music college that she got the chance to meet Jay Deasel, the person who later made her famous in the music industry. He was also the backbone in the making of Beyond Borders. "Jay Deasel is also the producer for my second album which will be out this year," she said.

Although her first album did not hit the Malaysian market, she hopes that her second album will as her fans have never stopped supporting her through her WEBSITE.

Due to positive reviews from her Malaysian fans, Shayna will be back in-town come March where she will be releasing her first single and also her Kali Pertama music video which features local rapper Shazzy and JFK.

"I cannot wait to 'balik kampung', I should thank Shazzy and JFK for convincing me to do something for my own country and I believe this is my chance to use the experiences that I have gathered when I was in New York," she said.

She also said that Shazzy and JFK flew to New York recently to complete their collaboration project and the duo were also involved in the making of Kali Pertama. A few producers from The Digitalist production house based in Canada directed the music video. A reality travelogue that will show the footage of them completing the project will be aired on Astro next month.

To see or hear more of Shayna Zaid, go to DeaselMusic.com (TheStar)
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