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Cheri Dennis - Moments of Clarity
Interview By: Dale Coachman
 Bad Boy has been known to put out many artists but very few have been through and been consistently successful. Singer and songwriter Cheri Dennis is patiently waiting to get her opportunity to expose her God give talent to the world. Raised in Cleveland all Cheri Dennis knew was singing and was determined early and the decision had been made. Involved in this fast revolving door that is R&B Ms. Dennis is aware of the politics and understands that this is a business and as a proud Bad Boy artist when the earth is in line on all cylinders she’ll be ready to step into the flashing lights and stay there.
Nobodysmiling.com : What was your childhood like coming up in Ohio and when did you decide to make that jump to New York?
 Cheri Dennis : I’ve always been involved in music and a lot of people that I’d met that were involved with music were not from Ohio. So when I got to a certain age I felt like I’d exhausted the whole music scene in Cleveland I felt like I had to go to another level and go to a major music market and my mom was from New York and my sister went to school here so at least I had someone there you know? So I needed to go to the next level and Cleveland wasn’t going to facilitate me getting a record deal and moving on. I love Cleveland but for what I was trying to do it wasn’t the place to be.
Nobodysmiling.com : How much pressure do you put on yourself when it comes to creating songs and performing?
Cheri Dennis : I think there’s a certain level of pressure I put on myself in general because I’m an artist and it is my debut so I don’t think there’s any pressure coming behind and act like Faith I think that’s just we artists we stress out.
Nobodysmiling.com : What about 2007 are you taking forward with you in 08’ and what about 07’ makes you glad that it’s 2008?
Cheri Dennis : I’m taking the same hunger with me from 07’ to 08’, and I really don’t want to leave anything behind in 2007, I had a lot of moments of clarity in 2007 and I would like to always have those moments of clarity and take that with me in 2008. Besides all the normal negative stuff that you always want to leave behind but there wasn’t anything significant in 07’ that I’d want to leave behind everything was pretty much on the up and up.
Nobodysmiling.com : What epiphany did you have last year that you’re actually glad you had it?
Cheri Dennis : Wow that was a good question. I need to really, really, really please myself. Not in any selfish type of way but that just means I need to know what makes me happy because then all of the things I don’t like I won’t be conscious of or even give any entertainment too.
Nobodysmiling.com : You started singing when you were eight years old, at what point did you know that’s what you wanted to pursue and nothing else?
Cheri Dennis : I don’t think I ever had that moment I was always Cheri Dennis the singer. It was always a natural progression I never had that moment where I thought, “I’m going to be a singer.” Even in high school you would’ve thought I had a record deal I was just in the mode that I was a singer and what else is there to do.
Nobodysmiling.com : What’s the biggest thing you’ve learned on the music and business side of this industry since you’ve been immersed in it?
Cheri Dennis : It’s not always about talent. There’s a lot of politics going on, that’s why it’s called the music business. I think that was one of the first things I had to recognize early on. I don’t know if that’s one of the most positive but it is one of the things I had to learn early on and you can be the most talented person in the world but it doesn’t mean that you’re going to be the most successful.
Nobodysmiling.com : Describe what your first encounter with Diddy was like?
Cheri Dennis : The first encounter was that he was invited to a party that I was at, and I sat down next to him and sang over the music that was playing. People ask me if I was nervous, no, I wanted the record deal so bad it kind of superseded me being nervous. Yeah that was the first time I met Sean Combs.
Nobodysmiling.com : I read that you also write and helped co-write other songs for other artists. How much writing did you do on your album?
Cheri Dennis : I wrote on two of the records and wrote about three on the other record.
Nobodysmiling.com : What is a typical day for you?
Cheri Dennis : I have a lot of typical days. Some of my typical days can have me up here in Atlantic all day long talking to people as such as you. Other typical days could be in Florida where my mom lives and just doing things that normal people do, washing my clothes, running errands that kind of thing. So I have a lot of typical days it’s not always the same.
Nobodysmiling.com : The title of your album is called In and Out of Love, where did the title stem from?
Cheri Dennis : Child I stay in and out of love (laughs) I’m playing, I’m not. Listening to all the songs when we had to scale it down, that’s what the overall theme was we had a lot of songs about emotions and relationships. I think it’s an appropriate title because sometimes its good to be in love and sometimes it’s to get on up out of it.
Nobodysmiling.com : What are you aspiring to accomplish this year?
Cheri Dennis : I like for people to more of Cheri Dennis the artist. I’d like for people to be more aware of my music and as artists we always like our albums to be successful. Really just solidify myself as a credible artist. I’m hoping that in 2008 people really get to fall in love with me and fall in love with my music as an artist.
Nobodysmiling.com : Do you find that a struggle to break that surface when you have the Keyshia Cole’s, Rihanna’s and Alicia Keys has it been more difficult to be heard?
Cheri Dennis : No, I don’t think that it’s Alicia Keys and Rihanna are the reason that I haven’t gotten my shine yet. I think when all elements are where they need to be in order for you to be successful I think that’s when you shine. I think that’s what needs to go on with me.
Nobodysmiling.com : Describe what it’s like to be on Bad Boy’s label, I think a lot of people have developed perceptions of what goes on in that camp. What has it been like for you thus far?
Cheri Dennis : There are so many urban myths about what goes on behind these doors. For me I’m proud to be on Bad Boy because I was a big Biggie fan and he was a phenomenal artist and just to know that I walked in the building that his man used to walk around in is an inspiration to me. I feel like I’m blessed and whatever people may think about Bad Boy or Puffy I think that I’m blessed and I’m in a position that people would definitely want to be in. So I thank God everyday that this is my life and not somebody else’s life and I want to thank all my fans and the people that have supported my career because they don’t have to do it and I’m thankful for them.
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