By Claudia Gardner:
On September 15, the spotlight will once again turn toward Lucea-based singer Ma Isheeba, but this time even she does not know exactly what the spotlight is for.
The Jamaican-British singer, songwriter, model, Kemetic Yoga teacher and Alexander Technique specialist is set to be among four women being honoured by Back to the Future at an awards presentation at The Jamaica Pegasus in Kingston, the others being Chevelle Franklyn, the late J Capri and Heather Cummings. And, rather unusually for an award recipient, Ma Isheeba is going to the ceremony without knowing precisely which award she will receive.
“I honestly do not know what I’m getting the award for,” she told Negril Times during an interview on Tuesday in Lucea. “It’s going to be a surprise.”
The mystery has left her amused and somewhat astonished—particularly because this is not her first recognition from Back to the Future. C
Ma Isheeba received two Grammy certificate awards in 2024, recognising her contribution as a vocalist to recordings associated with Eric Clapton and Peter Gabriel.
“So that was really amazing,” she recalled. “And I was like, wow. And then I’m getting another one.”
This time, however, there are few clues.
She has written songs that have appeared on charts and sung on numerous charting recordings throughout a remarkable international career. “I’ve written songs that have gone in the charts. I’ve sang on many, many chart-hitting songs,” she said. “So I’m really not sure.”
Even the press material announcing the forthcoming awards has not revealed her category.
“It’s a bit of a mystery,” she said. “So I’ll wait until the night.”
A career that began in church
The mystery award comes at the end of a musical journey that began when Ma Isheeba was a child.
“Church really was my foundation,” she told Negril Times.
Her brother, a guitarist, encouraged her to learn an instrument and taught her to play guitar. Although she initially used it largely to write songs rather than perform publicly, she has recently begun embracing the guitar as part of her live performances.
That transition has been both challenging and exhilarating.
She now performs live on Sundays at her place in Bulls Bay, Lucea gradually singing and playing guitar with her band of musicians. She also recently performed her first gig for senior citizens in Lucea at the Hanover Parish Library.
“It was really amazing,” she said. “It felt good.”
The woman once known as Chyna Whyne
For many people around the world, however, Ma Isheeba is better known by her former stage name, Chyna Whyne.
Her career under that name stretches back decades and encompasses music, modelling, international touring and eventually the Alexander Technique and wellness.
Born in England to Jamaican parents, she began singing in church as a young child. Her professional music career eventually took her around the world, working with some of the biggest names in popular music.
The Jamaica Observer has reported that she toured with artists including Peter Gabriel, Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton, Boney M and Seal.
Her voice can be heard in some extraordinary musical company. She contributed backing vocals to Peter Gabriel’s celebrated So album, including the iconic “Sledgehammer,” and was part of the vocal team on Rick Astley’s “Never Gonna Give You Up.”
She also recorded and toured with Eric Clapton, including work associated with his Pilgrim album, and toured with The Who.
Her own music has also been an important part of her story. Her repertoire includes songs such as “Sexy Baal Ed,” “Walking in Stilettos,” “Pick Up Your Feet and Dance” and the culturally rooted Melanin Awakening project. Back to the Future’s own profile of her describes her as a singer-songwriter whose work has crossed reggae, pop and international music.
From music to movement
Her musical career ultimately led her somewhere unexpected.
After experiencing severe back pain associated with years of performing and wearing high heels, she discovered the Alexander Technique in 1999. The experience was transformative enough for her to step away from music and modelling for three years to train formally in the technique. She qualified in 2002.
She subsequently became internationally known as the “High Heel Guru”, developing her Walking in Stilettos programme to help women improve balance, posture and movement. Her work has taken her around the world and has been featured in international media.
Today, that journey has expanded into Kemetic Yoga and holistic wellness, and she is now bringing those disciplines into her work in Jamaica.
Yet music has never really left her.
Now, as Ma Isheeba, she is picking up her guitar again, performing her own music and reconnecting with the musician who was always there beneath the model, wellness practitioner and teacher.
And on September 15, she will return to the stage for another kind of performance.
Only this time, even the woman receiving the award doesn’t know what the award is.
Perhaps that is fitting for a career that has taken so many unexpected turns.
She’ll simply have to wait until the envelope—or the announcement—reveals the next chapter.
