JAPAN – BORN SINGER / SONGSTRESS SENA KANA ANNOUNCES SURPRISE FOUR SONG EP SERENITY
New Music From Japan
Photo By: Shuya Nakano By Pinky Black Japanese songstress Sena Kana has just released her new EP, Serenity. The EP is spearheaded by her groundbreaking single, “Up”, which was released last year in March. “Up” has already been certified Gold, and with that came another first for Sena Kana. Sena is the first female Japanese solo artist to ever have a Gold-certified single in the United States. The song has already reached 87 million streams, a feat that has never been accomplished by another Japanese female artist. “Up” was produced by Lindsey Jackson and Ken Lewis. Ken Lewis is one half of the production team Katalyst. The song also features additional support by Wiz Khalifa and the Australian band, Sheppard. Serenity features four new songs, “Serenity,” “Undisputed,” “Believe in You,” and “Your Eyes,” and was co-written by powerhouse producer Poo Bear. In fact, Poo Bear with the principal songwriter on this project. Poo Bear also takes the lead on the song, “Undisputed. “Serenity is my idea of bringing peace to the world during these most troubling times,” shares Sena. For those of you not familiar with Poo Bear aka Jason Boyd, he is the singer, songwriter and producer who has worked with Canadian superstar Justin Beiber. In fact, he is Justin’s main collaborator on many of his songs, including, “Despacito (Remix),” “Where Are Ü Now,” “What Do You Mean?,” and “PYD.” In addition to working with
34 50
Justin, Poo Bear has also worked with artists such as Chris Brown, Mariah Carey, and Jill Scott. He also co-wrote Usher’s “Caught Up” with reached #8 on the Billboard Charts. “Caught Up” is off of Usher’s Diamond Certified album, Confessions. “I hope my music can be an outlet for my fans,” says Sena, “and that my message can be embraced by those who need it most. The concept of the EP was to showcase my creative diversity and spread a positive message to the world. My executive producer, POO BEAR & I spent a lot of time perfecting this project and I am so happy to finally share it with the world! Especially during a global pandemic.” The production on Confessions was handled by Ken Lewis as well. Ken both mixed and mastered the EP. Ken has also worked with a number of high profile artists, including Ariana Grande, Kanye West, and Taylor Swift. Sena was born in Tokyo, Japan and at an early age took a liking to musicals such as The Sound Of Music and Mary Poppins. It wasn’t long before her love for this type of music and plays had her acting in them as well. In her early years she was quite involved in these. Finally by 2017 she started releasing her own music. Her first single was “Live Your Dreams,” and the song reached #1 on the European iTunes chart. She even filmed a video for this song in Oslo, Norway. By 2018 she had
Rock and Blues International • August October2020 2020
another hit with the song, “Truth Or Dare.” This song did very well in France, as well as all across Europe. Now Sena is back with something a little different that her first two singles, and seems to be really energized by her new direction. “I just hope that my music makes each and every person listening feel a sense of warmth,” adds Sena. “I’m most energized when I know my songs are bringing people joy.” Be sure to check out Sena Kana’s new EP, Serenity. Also be sure to listen to her single “Up.” I think you’re going to like what you hear.
