www.natasharathnayake.com For Jazz aficionados, Natasha represents it all – a sultry voice that can effortlessly tackle the nuances of jazz, blues and R&B… coupled, of course, with an exotic beauty that makes most males literally go weak at their knees! How ever, it’s been said – more than once one might add – in the simplest of sentences: “Natasha is a lovely girl!” and that says it all. She even won an award being ‘The Friendliest Artist’ at a song festival. Extremely humble, enjoying her work and living a simple uncomplicated life Natasha has been able to combine her looks with her talents to good effects.
It’s only after listening to her perform that many people saw beyond her personality and looks and appreciated her for her talents. Her simplicity and humility have endeared her to many- not only in Colombo, but overseas as well. “I’m easily attracted to humble people,” she confesses. Having been subjected to bright lights from a tender age, Natasha says that she does two jobs that she loves doing very much. But never takes either for granted. She tries to keep her feet firmly planted on the ground. She believes her talents are a blessing from above and wants to make the most of it. Being the oldest of three siblings Natasha is followed by her two sisters Michelle and Vanessa. Both her parents worked very hard and long hours to put food on the table. She was brought up by her grand parents and, as a result, was extremely attached to her grand mother in particular. A quiet student who did not get up to much mischief, Natasha displayed an interest in the arts ever since she was a little girl. She was always enthusiastic about singing and performing, although she was very shy. Never in her wildest dreams did she think that she would be performing on a stage as she is doing today. But, of course – like all children – her child hood ambitions kept changing…… First, she wanted to become a dancing teacher and then, a dress designer. Singing as a past time since the age of seven – in schools and church choirs – Natasha’s professional debut was in mid 1998 with a pop band named “Dream Team”, after which she moved on to a solo career. Trying to rent an apartment, the land lady inquired from her if she knew any one who would be interested in singing with a leading band. At a tender age, no one really knows what they want to do – so, since she had the basic grounding, she thought she would take a shot at it. A few days later, she auditioned and to her surprise got the job! Her first gig was at the Little Hut, a then popular night club in Colombo, where she performed with knees shaking and butterflies in her stomach. The night club gigs were exciting for a while, but very tiring. She would start at 9p.m. and will go on till 4 a.m., playing from Thursday through Saturdays playing at various hot spots in Colombo. There were times where she would return home at 6 o’clock in the morning after her gig – and immediately have a shower and a quick snack before going on to her modeling assignments….. a routine she engaged in repeatedly with no real rest. But all those challenges have made her appreciate the finer things in her life now. Natasha traveled extensively for overseas gigs with Dream Team. In an often critically conservative Sri Lanka, it was tough being a young woman trying to make a decent living as a professional singer and a model. And then fate led her to Kenya, which nearly put an end to Natasha’s singing career. She was hopeful that she would be able to perform in Kenya, but never banked too much on it. But destined to be a singer after been in Mombasa for a few months, little windows of opportunity began opening up and not long after, she began singing with popular Kenyan bands. She was introduced to a jazz band, which saw her make a 180- degree turn in her musical journey. Once back in Sri Lanka Natasha pursued a solo career which mainly featured Jazz music. But she would occasionally keep in touch with the genre that she started her singing career with…… R&B. The year 2007 was very special for her. Her first album “My Obsession” – a jazz / gospel album – was released in 2007. Late 2008 early 2009 Natasha started working with a young music producer/composer name Azlan. Together they produced a single named “Runaway” which was picked up by “Radio Express” in USA for inclusion in their compilation. The song will be aired in Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia. Her simplicity and humility have endeared her to many- not only in Colombo, but overseas as well. “I’m easily attracted to humble people,” she confesses. Written by- Savithri Rodrigo
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