Khalia teams up with Tanya Stephens on ‘No Answer’

Jamaican-British rising reggae star Khalia has teamed up with the legendary Jamaican songstress Tanya Stephens for the single No Answer, which questions the commitment of politicians to the cry of the people.

"It was great working with Tanya. We had two records in mind for her to feature on, and I'm glad she chose this one because her lyrics are a perfect fit," Khalia said.

She said that she felt inspired by the "suffering of the poor" to do the song, because of the message that it delivers to those who are still struggling under the yoke of an oppressive economic system.

"Unfortunately, protest music is something that has to happen, because music is a reflection of reality and this is a part of real life. I would prefer to not have to sing these songs, but it's a message that's needed. We have to challenge the system and demand change," she said.

The song was recorded with slick production work from Grammy Award-winning producer Tony 'CD' Kelly and Lionel De La O. Khalia is signed to K-Licious Music, an independent label run by Kelly. This is the first single off of Khalia's upcoming Stay True EP.

"The EP has songs that talk about a wide range of life topics. I'm really excited for people to hear my first body of work! All the collaborations on it happened by fate. Just meant to be," she said. Additional features on the EP come from Shaggy, Mortimer, and Blvk H3ro.

Khalia, given name Khaila Million, was born in Westmoreland, but migrated to London, England, when she was six years old. She returned to the island in 2016 to pursue music, which she described as her passion. She has previously done collaborations with the likes of Tifa, Busy Signal, Stonebwoy, and I-Octane.

Khalia captured the Breakthrough Artiste of the Year Award from the Jamaica Reggae Industry Association in 2021.