Jah'Mila

Jah'Mila has been singing professionally since she was 17 years old. She performed background vocals for the band Dub Kartel^[1] and sang harmonies for The Wailers, Black Uhuru, Cherine Anderson, and The Congos. She made her solo debut in 2016 with the song, "Reggae Soul."^[2] Jah'Mila performed at the 2019 Halifax Urban Folk Festival.^[3] In 2020, she released her song, "Chant Their Names", which critiqued police brutality.^[4][5] In 2022, Jah'Mila performed a tribute to Nina Simone with Symphony Nova Scotia.^[6] Jah'Mila was described by The Coast as "arguably the biggest name in Halifax reggae."^[5]

In 2022, Jah'Mila released her debut LP, Roots Girl.^[7] Her father, guitarist Earl "Chinna" Smith, played on the album,^[2] which was recorded in Jamaica.^[8] The Coast named Roots Girl one of their top ten albums of 2022.^[9] Roots Girl was nominated for Reggae Recording of the Year at the 2024 JUNO Awards.^[10]

In February 2023, she performed with the National Arts Centre Orchestra at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa as part of a series of performances tracing the history of reggae.^[11] She performed with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra in April 2023.^[12]

In 2024, she released her sophomore album Woman of the Sun.^[10] In 2025 she contributed a cover of Joel Plaskett's "Harbour Boys" to the Plaskett tribute album Songs from the Gang.^[13] She was featured on "Victory," an anthem for the Northern Super League, Canada’s professional women’s soccer league, created Halifax Tides FC player, Tiffany Cameron, also known as Tiff.^[14]

Jhamiela Smith was born in Kingston, Jamaica.^[1] Her father is guitarist, Earl "Chinna" Smith. After visiting her mother in Halifax, Nova Scotia over a decade, she relocated there.^[15] While in Halifax, she met her former partner, musician Adrian Dunn.^[1]

• Roots Girl (2022)
• Woman of the Sun (2024)