Shannon and Shanika, our next “Femme Voices” spotlight, are a femme couple living and loving in their native island, Jamaica. Shannon, a nursing student, and Shanika, a musician, are best friends and consider themselves to be twin flames after being reconnected via one fateful Instagram DM. They talk to us about their dreams and aspirations as individuals and as a couple. Their view on relationships and their energy-focused self-care methods allow them to have the capacity to love one another effortlessly, in the midst of an environment that isn’t exactly receptive to who they are. Shannon and Shanika share the things they are passionate about and their inspiring love story below!
Please introduce yourselves. What are your names? Where are you located? What are your pronouns and how do you identify?
Hi! I am Shannon Solomon, a 22-year-old femme living in Jamaica! I’m a final year nursing student at UTECH. My pronouns are Her/She.
My name is Shanika Campbell. Stage name is Shanika Soulchild. I’m a 26-year-old Jamaican singer, musician and songwriter. I’m a femme; my pronouns are her/she.
Tell us a bit about the paths that led you to nursing and music careers.
Shannon: Being an empathetic person at heart, I felt like nursing was the most fitting career!! Four years of nursing school is hella tough though, kudos to anyone in the medical field! Lol. I believe that everyone deserves access to appropriate health care without discrimination and that is what I strive to provide. We need nurses — Good nurses.
I don’t know what the universe has in store for me but I believe I have multiple purposes on this earth. So, I won’t limit myself to just nursing, especially with my beloved in the music field. I double up as her manager so, I’m still learning about that industry.
Shanika: Music has been a love and my first love. I believe I was chosen by music and not the other way around; it always seems to find me or I have a natural draw to it. Born and raised in a family of musicians, the passion was developed from a very young age, giving me a natural ear for it. I play the guitar and the drums and nobody taught me. The instruments were always around; so, I grew to love them, I grew to love music.
The Glam Femme seeks to explore the multi-dimensionality of queer women and folks of color. In what ways would each of you consider yourselves multi-dimensional, if at all?
Shannon: As queer women of color, I’d like to think that we should consider ourselves multi-dimensional. We are unique, multi-talented, beautiful and empowered. Our experiences teach wisdom and we are able to feel each other’s emotions and relate accordingly.
Shanika: I’ve never used the term multidimensional, but I believe that I am. We are; had we not been, I don’t believe we’d be on this interview. The paths that we chose in life teaches us to be more, embrace more, give more and over time develop multidimensional consciousness.
What are your favorite, most effective self-care methods?
Shannon: Recreational Marijuana!! This plant was put on earth for a reason; If only persons knew of the amazing benefits. It’s relaxing and doubles up for couple’s and single meditation. Deep breathing is also helpful. We love crystals and ensure we cleanse and recharge them so we can also have that boost of energy.
Shanika: My most effective and absolute favorite self-care method is rolling up a joint with the highest grades of marijuana, smoking it, then meditate. I find this very relaxing, and what better way to ease your mind? Regardless of what mood I’m sunk into, this always takes me to serenity; experiencing the bliss of solitude. In absolute silence, I find myself re-energized and ready to tackle any obstacle.
Explain how the two of you met. How long you have been together?
Shanika: Shannon slid into my DM on Instagram, asking questions about my headwrap. Little did I know that she was this interested. I was very intrigued, myself. I checked out her page, went through her pictures and she caught my eyes. She was the most beautiful woman I’ve ever laid eyes on. So, I devised a plan, not knowing her intentions, I wanted to know her more. After talking a little, I thought she looked familiar so I mentioned it. Turns out I was her form prefect* in high school. It didn’t take long for me to realize that she was my twin flame and made our relationship official on August 29, 2017. We’ve been together now for 1 year and 8 months.
Shannon: *blushing* Precisely. A really good friend of mine and I were chatting on WhatsApp and she mentioned a show she attended then told me about this amazing singer that was a part of the set and sent me her IG page. I was quite captivated by the energy I received by just looking at her pictures. There is this one picture that stood out with her in some red lipstick; sheesh. That has been my favorite shade till this day.
What do you think is the most important trait for people to have in order to create a successful relationship?
For us, it takes more than one trait in having a healthy, successful relationship; for what is love without trust? And what is honesty without acceptance? They all work hand in hand. Each one supports the other — communication being the key component among them all. That’s how love works; it is never one-sided, that’s how a relationship works.
It looks like you love to travel. Describe your favorite trip together.
Shannon: My favorite trip together is the first time we were invited to Sandals South Coast. Our journey started out with a small hike along a shortcut to get to the bottom of the hill we live on. It was really rocky and had many aerial views. We did not know the directions to the hotel but my Soulchild is quite the optimist adventurer. She’s not afraid to ask questions. We got there safely and she serenaded the crowd, everyone loved it! We then had a lovely dinner and night together.
Shanika: I love to travel. Unfortunately, Shannon and I haven’t travelled internationally together yet but I look forward to those days; it’s definitely something we’ve talked about. We have been around our wonderful island together though, whether going to the beach in another parish, indulging in different cuisines, sightseeing and visiting each other’s family homes.
Being Jamaican-American, I often wonder how I would maneuver living my life authentically if I lived in the country of my roots, despite the homophobia there. How do you deal with being fully yourself and part of a same-sex couple in Jamaica?
Dealing with homophobia in Jamaica is daily. The law of having homosexual marriage hasn’t been passed here. Being a lesbian is frowned upon but not as much as being gay (males). I fear for the homosexual males here more than ourselves. It is a shame, I love my country but it’s time Jamaica wise up as a nation and realize that being gay isn’t a choice, and we are humans too. We deserve love and happiness.
I don’t hide who I am, but I shouldn’t have to hide the love I have for my woman. We only show intimacy when we are in Safe-Spaces and thanks to programmes like Equality JA and Transwave we get to partake in our own Pride and other Lymes.
What are you most proud of about each other?
Shannon: She never fails to amaze me. For the past one plus year we’ve been living together, I get to know and appreciate her more each day. She is such an amazingly talented musician. I’ve watched her grow and develop confidence, getting better at what she does. Before, she did not share her own songs, but I’ve watched her performance after performance and there’s only going UP from here! I’m most proud that every day she lives her truth and continues to be a fearless wombman, touching lives around her.
Shanika: What I see Shannon do every day is get up as early as 5 in the morning to go to the hospital and she doesn’t come home till about 11 pm every night. In between, she’s dealing with patients, doing labs, rushing from the hospital to get to work and I don’t know how she does it. When she gets home, I know she is tired. I can see it but she always still finds time for me. I don’t know how she does it. Her drive and dedication are what I’m most proud about.
Shannon & Shanika: Thank you so much for this opportunity! We don’t have much lesbian representation in Jamaica and we want to break that stigma, so this is a great forum to do so.
* A form prefect is a student in the British school system who has been given certain responsibilities in the school, similar to the responsibilities given to a hall monitor or safety patrol members. (Wikipedia)
