At age 15, Shaniah Rollo has the genes to complement the notes she navigates in her young yet already soulful voice. For a singer that age, she already won the audience and the judges over, till the semifinals of her recent stint at Ireland’s Got Talent, and as finalist in the Junior Eurovision song contest in Ireland in 2018.
Named after country singer Shania Twain, this amazing young girl also grew up listening to the music of Michael Jackson, Mariah Carey and Celine Dion. And just like girls her age, she also adores Ariana Grande, Billie Eilish and Jimin of BTS.
Shaniah’s parents are both musicians who worked in Vietnam and in South Korea, which explains why she can sing in Korean. Her sister Mia Kyarra Rollo, who used to do covers and backup vocals for Universal Records, also teaches her to sing.
Shaniah puts on hold her dream to be part of Pinoy Big Brother (PBB) Teens eidtion because she had to stay in Ireland.
Ms. Rosabella Jao Arribas, top executive of RJA Productions, first heard about Shania from her composer-friend Nathaniel Cabañero. Ms. Rosabella saw a lot of potential in this girl, and falling for her cute voice made her research about Shaniah on YouTube. This made RJA Productions decide to groom and polish a breathtaking yet pure, raw, fresh talent.
In Ireland, she enjoys her Mom’s cooking like adobo and dinuguan. What she does miss from the Philippines though are members of her family. Her grandparents, both on Mom’s and Dad’s side, are close to Shaniah. She misses her paternal grandmother, who she left behind in Sta. Cruz, Laguna, where Shaniah was born and raised. Her late maternal grandmother used to sing to Shaniah as a baby. Her sister Mia, who now has her own family, and brother Gian, were both past 18 when Dad petitioned for his wife and children to join him in Ireland. Thus, only Shaniah, then 12, could come along.
Shaniah’s now on her third year in school and is preparing to become a Business Accountant one day. She loves to do videoke at home to hone her talent and rehearses and performs with the Brightlights, a group of talented singers from different schools, on weekends.
Her father also taught her how to play the ukelele, guitar and piano. Not good, yet, she says. But learning. Listen to her sing “La Vie En Rose” and her pipes match her French, as she is taking up lessons for it. World-class talent, this baby is. A babe-in-training. And, proudly Filipina.
Shaniah Rollo is back home in the Philippines for the holidays … and we can almost hear an angel sing, with her first single. Soon.