Roveena is a Canadian Tamil Recording Artist signed with Vintage Green Records and the Brand Ambassador for Lymphoma Cancer Canada. She is a vocal powerhouse wi
th over 300,000 views on YouTube and a fan base that spans from continent to continent. Most recently, her album, Perfect World has been called “intoxicating, dramatic and emotionally provocative” and has received critical acclaim internationally
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Roveena has loved music all her life or at least since she can remember. Her road to stardom started with one of her good friends uploading a YouTube video of her singing a cover of Etta James classic “At Last”. Though Roveena was quite reluctant to have her video uploaded, she eventually gave in. To her surprise, her video caught the attention of a CITY TV producer who ended up approaching her to do a live taping. She still remembers thinking that this was all a dream. It was only when she was in the studio and the “live taping” red light went on that reality struck her, “at that moment I just had to do what I knew to do – sing.”
The beginning of her journey was quite scary, she says. “It’s like when you stand in front of a giant mountain and you are trying
to figure out how to get to the top.” Being a part of the South Asian community and not having taken the conventional route of becoming a doctor, lawyer or engineer, she received great criticism in her initial stages, and rarely did she receive encouragement. “You just have to remember that its your life. You can either live it by making others happy or you can live it by making yourself happy.” Music is Roveena’s greatest source of happiness.
Every day is different for Roveena. It ranges from preparing for shows, appearances, to writing and recording. “Every day is a mix bag!” she says. Her motivation to keep going is rooted in being able to make music that has the ability to positively impact others at an emotional level, “thats thetrue motivation factor for me”.
“My music can be described as a message. A song can make you feel and think about issues and concepts that sometimes are really hard to talk about. My song ‘Perfect World’ was really hard to share at first because it was a window into how I have been dealing with personal issues with self-esteem and image. Especially in an industry that can sometimes be perceived solely on appearances. You need to be confident and believe in yourself. I know it sounds clich but the moment any of those two start to waiver you will lose your focus.” – Roveena
This past year, after Roveena’s father was unfortunately diagnosed with Stage 4 Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma, she partnered up with Lymphoma Ca
ncer Canada. She is now their brand ambassador. Her newest single, “Love will light the way” was created to help raise awareness for Lymphoma Cancer. All the net proceeds from her single will be given to this organization to help those living with Lymphoma cancer. Her official music video for this song featuring real-life patients and cancer survivors can be seen at http://vevo.ly/MHBsMx . You can also view Roveena’s official promo video done withIce Cream Truck Films and Lymphoma Canada at https://youtu.be/Urfb7gnrlZ4 .
Her second studio album is set to be released in 2016. Be sure to sign up for all her news and updates at www.Roveena.ca.
Co-Executive Editors: Stefi Anthonipillai & Narmitha Kanagaratnam
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