Interview with Tanya Stevens, April 21, 2003.  questions and forward by montana for chicagoreggae.com:

in the years i've been doing my thing w/chicagoreggae.com, i've interviewed many, many internationally famous reggae stars, everyone from buju banton to sean paul to elephant man... but honestly, i can't recall ever getting excited about any of the interviews. as i've said before, i'm not into studying music or the people who make it. i'm into enjoying the finished product alone.

there was always one artist who i felt different about. that was tanya stephens. it could be the fact that we were born on the same day in July, or something, that i feel a soul sisterly attraction to her music.

my chance to interview ms. stephens finally came when i received an email from her advertising her new website, i jumped on the opportunity to interview her via email and she was nice and generous enough with her time to oblige. the answers in bold were typed by tanya herself and nothing has been altered or changed in any way.  i am very excited to share it with you all and want to thank tanya stephens for her tjme and energy she put into this. 

Montana: Which albums do you have in your collection that you think would be surprising to your fans?      

Tanya Stephens:  Drops Of Jupiter by Train, Journey To Jah by Gentleman

I’m an artist myself, and for some reason, sadness or anger has always my greatest inspiration to write, while  joy/happiness inspires me to paint.  What inspires you to create?

Life. Everything about life is inspirational. My experiences, the experiences of others around me.

What are your hobbies?

Hobbies include writing everything from songs and poems to stories and sometimes incorporating all three, as well as graphic design and computer animation, fishing (rather inconvenient these days), playing The Sims (Maxis), designing clothes. I'd have to say my favorite hobby by far is reading and i'm especially drawn to Sydney Sheldon, Stephen King, John Grisham, Robert Ludlum. Love Enid Blyton for sharing with my daughter and nieces.

I know you’ve been traveling a lot lately. Do you intend to make Jamaica your full time residence in the future or will it be somewhere else and why?

Right now I live in jamaica full time. However, it would be naive of me to say categorically what I will be thinking in 10 years.

I’ve read that djing was just a hobby for you at first. What were your original career ambitions and do you still intend on fulfilling any of them?

My ambitions varied from fashion designing, Criminal Law, Graphic Arts, to Writing among many other whims. I still harbour intentions of studying law if I can work out a convenient schedule.

(I’ve also read that) you have a daughter. Would you want her to become a DJ like yourself? Why or why not?

I have no career path in mind for my daughter to follow. I dont treat her like an extention of myself. My job is to protect her while she is young and equip her with the skills to be the best at anything she can possibly be, and if that turns out to be collecting garbage, she knows i'll be right there trying to offer suggestions on how to own a fleet of garbage trucks.

If possible, which artist/artists, living or deceased, would you most like to do a collaboration with?

I dont think of music like that. Each song is personal to me, so if it sounds like a particular person's vocals would enhance the track then at the moment that's the person to work with (with the exception of times when I collaborate to help a friend come up). I'm really into music, not names.

What is your all time favorite song you have written and why?

I haven't written my all time favorite song yet. I like to think my best will always be yet to come, so I dont dwell on things i've already done.

What is your (or one of your) all time favorite songs (any artist)?

Tracks of My Tears, Smokey Robinson

Now the obligatory:  What can we expect from you in the future (both near and far)?

I'm getting more involved in the music creation process. There are a few promising artistes i'd like to do some work with, and of course i'll be doing my own writing and recording. I'm really feeling songwriting right now, and I write for other artistes as well.

Anything else you would like to say?

Thank all my fans and well-wishers for their support throughout the years. I know there are a lot different things you could do with your money besides paying to see me perform or buying my music. To all the people within the Dancehall/Reggae industry, please stop categorizing artistes as male/female. There's no such thing as a woman song or a man song, is there? It is rather frustrating to be categorized by the failure or success of my SEX when i'm investing my efforts in my MUSIC. :-)