Mzs Quanny Takes On Dancehall With "Badness" and Different Moods

Mzs Quanny steps on to dancehall scene with her groovy and energetic single "Badness," in which she hopes can bring her mainstream onto the genre.

"Badness" brings a new dancehall and R&B energy on the track that integrates the two genres. Produced by Versii Don Records, the song has made its rounds in Jamaica and the U.S.

Mz Quanny also has a mixtape named "Moods Not Genre" in which she blends the genres that are of her personal interest. This allows the project to evoke feelings from different sounds rather than hearing the same melody in her music.

She is an independent artist who has been making a name for herself over the course of years.

For someone who was raised by Jamaican and Kittitian parents, Quanny is very passionate about dancehall music based on how it makes her stay true to her culture and roots.

In this interview, Mzs Quanny opens up about her single "Badness," mixtape "Moods Not Genres," and future career plans.

For those who don’t know, where do you originate from?
I am from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, but I am a child of Kittitian and Jamaican.

What influenced your decision to pursue music?
I am like a firm believer in going for it. I always loved music and I always been into music. I feel like it is something that has been into me. I also feel like if it is something you are interested in you should always pursue it. I started off in the choir when I was a little girl. I always felt at home onstage, at home performing, and I always felt comfortable writing. I would go into this like different kind of world and everything, so that was more comfort and home for me. I don't even feel like I am pursuing it, I feel like I am living it.

Being that you have a Jamaican and Kittitian (St Kitts and Nevis) background, what effects did it have on your music career?
Having this background I guess is really the reason why I have been successful honestly. I feel like it has put me in so many different genres, open me up so many different kinds of music, and different times of music. It influences what I am doing now, as far as not just only being a dancehall artist, just having a different flavor. A different package, having a different look, having a different style. It just really really contributed to my success that I am having right now.

“Badness” brings a new and different sound of dancehall to fans of the genre. How has the song impacted your career in dancehall and what has the response been like?
That’s good because new and different is what I was going for! I tell people all the time that my start was R&B. When I started doing dancehall, I was just really having fun doing it and trying it out because I was always putting reggae style in my music but not so much dancehall. “Badness” now is a different side of Mzs Quanny. It is definitely a different side because all of my songs before then have been love songs, heartbreak, and different kind of songs like that. So for me to have just this sexy, confident song, it was just a different version of Quanny. I think that definitely has brought a different eye opener to people. I think that is the reason why people have been responding very good to it, people love it and I have not heard anything bad yet. I always stay open to the critiques or whatever, but I haven't any bad feedback on it yet. It has been doing very well, playing in Jamaica, playing in Germany, in New York, playing in here Philly. It’s nothing better than getting love from your own hometown especially. So I got it from my hometown, I got it from the originator of dancehall, and everything. It’s doing pretty good, it’s very good and I'm just going to making sure I got another song that could follow up.

You also released a mixtape last year named “Moods Not Genres” which has a similar dancehall and r&b vibe like “Badness.” How did the idea of the project come up?
“Moods Not Genres” is my baby, it's my first project. I did everything strategically and I was very strict on this project. I was so excited about doing it and just took my time with it. It was really a package to reintroduce Mzs Quanny to everybody. I felt like the way I went with Badness, overseas and here, I needed something to follow up and show people like “yo she really doing something.” The idea for me was “Moods Not Genres” meaning music is supposed to be a mood, and not just knock down to a genre. You are not supposed to just feel like I am a reggae artist, I am a dancehall artist, I am an R&B artist. If you are an artist you are an artist. I want to appeal to everybody mood. I want you to feel like if you are in love today you can play number nine, if you want to dance up or whine up somewhere then play number ten, if you want to make love to somebody play number five or number seven. If you feel like “yo I just feel like wanna be in a conscious mood,” I want you to listen to number ten and number eleven, you know just really just getting into your own world. I wanna go back to when music just be on repeat, and you really could relate to it. When I listen to music like Toni Braxton, or even Jhene Aiko, new people like Cardi B. Cardi B is crazy but her music you can sit there and be like girl yesss. So I want people to be able to go back to that and be like “yo this is really how I'm feeling right now,” “this really how I feel to today,” “oh this is how I felt at nine o'clock but now I feel like this at two o'clock,” and blast the whole mixtape or just blast some songs from the mixtape, but just keep it on repeat. I was going back to that idea with music: real music, real feelings, and how music is really supposed to speak to you. It is not supposed to be knocked down to a genre but just really a mood.

Do you have any aims for the mixtape this year?
My aim is to bring visuals to it. I released the mixtape and promoted it a little bit. I want the visuals to show off the mixtape a little bit more. I am currently working on videos for a majority of the songs, and I have got some done so just wait out for that.

Apart from the mixtape, what can we expect from Mzs Quanny in 2019?
Expect some great features, a couple shows, I got some really good artist that I am working with right now. He has is making waves as well, he has been in the industry for a while, so I just definitely want the people to look out for that. Also, I am working on an EP (shoutout Wolf Nation). We are going to get an EP done, which will another project for everybody to look forward to.

Final Question, where can those who want to learn and hear more of your music find you?
You can find me on Instagram, Twitter, and Youtube. I am mainly on Instagram and YouTube, but I have a facebook page: @mzsquanny. My music can be found on Amazon, Pandora, iTunes, Tidal, and all the other major music platforms. You can find me anywhere, but just make sure you follow on Instagram, YouTube, and Twitter for all updates, videos, new songs, and everything coming up.