Biography
read full storyFrom birth, Yeshemabeth McGregor was invested with musical talents. Her father, Freddie McGregor, is an international Reggae Artist and her mother, Judy Mowatt, also an International Reggae/Gospel Artist, was a back-ground vocalist for the legendary Bob Marley in the I-Threes. At age three, Yeshemabeth started learning to play the piano and by age seven, the violin. She made her first appearance as a back-ground vocalist for her mother at age nine and she has been doing so ever since. Three years later, at age twelve, she teamed up with Damien Marley (son of Bob Marley), Shiah Coore (son of Cat Coore of the group Third World), Noel and Ricky Parks (sons of Lloyd Parks of ‘Lloyd Parks and we the people’), and Richard Bertram (son of former politician Arnold Bertram) to form a band called ‘THE SHEPARDS’. The group did one tour in Canada and several local shows including REGGAE SUNSPLASH ’91. However, after a year, the group dismantled and Yeshemabeth continued on with her studies. In 1995, Shema went on her first two-week tour of Japan with her father promoting a single they did together titled ‘MAGIC IN THE AIR’. This single led to a recording contract with 24/7 Records. By the age of eighteen years old, Yeshemabeth had accomplished a lot more than most children her age. She completed her debut album ‘LET’S TALK ABOUT IT’, which upon its release in Japan in February of ’97, sold over 10,000 copies during its first two weeks, a great achievement for a Jamaican artist. In 1997, she went to Japan for three weeks to perform on REGGAE JAPANSPLASH alongside Papa San, Wailing Souls, Luciano, Marcia Griffiths, and her father, to name a few; that tour turned out impressively well for her solo debut. Japan was truly the breaking ground for Yeshemabeth. During the years 2003-2005, Yeshemabeth took a hiatus from recording. She took some time to concentrate on her personal growth and put focus on her personal goals. She returned, more mature in her personality, as a result of the experiences that she has been through and the process had allowed her to contribute some lyrically fascinating tracks to her fourth album ‘A New State of Mind’ which was released in April 2006. That album reflected a new stage of growth for Yeshemabeth who openly spoke about trials involving love, her career, and her relationships. Since 2006, Shema reemerged onto the dancehall scene with singles such as ‘Buss it up’ on the Stick-Up Riddim, ‘I Spy’ on the Breaking News Riddim, ‘Caught Up’ on the Forever Riddim, ‘Wanna Get Sum’ on the Chiney K Riddim, and most recently ‘All About Me’ on the Workout Riddim. All these were produced by her brother Stephen “Di Genius’ McGregor. Most recently She’s Ma Beth has shared in the commercial triumphs of The Big Ship Music Company. A family owned business that has spawned her brothers (Prducers/Performer) Stephen ‘Di Genius’ McGregor and Chino. Due to their success and precocious talent the three of them have been featured in articles globally including; NYTimes and NatGeo’s World Music TV show. Under the Big Ship umbrella She’s Ma Beth has reemerged again as a solo artist with some dancehall victories of her own as well as some soulfull one – drop ballards. She is currently working on a fresh new album that with truly showcase her musical expertise and her chronicles as an independent woman ‘telling it like it is, raw with honest emotion’, as only Shema can. Yet throughout this journey, her parents have always been, and will always be her greatest influences. “My father worked too hard for me not to do the same. He taught me where we came from and where we need to go. His hard work has always been a direct encouragement to me and I will always try to not give it up. And my mother, my light, my strength, without her, all this would be in vein. Everything I do in this life is to first and foremost please God, make my parents proud, and finally, find fulfillment within myself”.