VI.BE

Joni Sheila is a half-Filipino, half-Belgian singer-songwriter and ex-street performer who grew up in Ghent, Belgium. She was named after Joni Mitchell.

In 2014 Joni released her debut album 'Change' by making use of crowdfunding. She was one of the first Belgian artists to do so. Apart from playing in big Belgian venues such as Ancienne Belgique, Arenbergschouwburg and 404 she was also crowned the best street performer of Belgium, the Netherlands and Melbourne, Australia.

Her story did not go unheard: In 2015 Joni was invited to Vienna, Austria to give a TEDx talk. She was also invited to be on a Dutch documentary (Hessels Herberg, NPO2) about the best street musicians of the Netherlands.

After busking her way around Europe, Joni went on a year long adventure to Australia in 2016. When she returned to Belgium she launched another crowdfunding campaign to release her EP "Acoustic Sessions II".

When the pandemic hit, Joni was unable to do music. She also became aware of the lack of Asian representation in the media. She wanted to do something about that. In the summer of 2022 Joni received a small grant to organise a showcase with artists who look like her: Asian Persuasion, the first edition of many.

Thanks to busking Joni got to see the world, she crossed paths with many inspiring people and she had crazy adventures. But it was time for a new chapter. In 2023 Joni renounced street performing to focus more on her original music and stage performances with a band.

To be continued...