World of Jamaican Music

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An illustrated map of the creators of Jamaican music and how they are connected.

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Lila Iké

Artist. Revival

Active
2017-present
Sunrise
January 23, 1994, Christiana, Manchester, Jamaica

Lila Iké (born Alecia Tameka Grey) is a Jamaican singer who came up through Protoje's In.Digg.Nation Collective. Her debut album, Treasure Self Love (2025), was nominated for the reggae Grammy. Gardy Stein credits her with "a vocal command that's truly exceptional."

She was born in Christiana, a small town in Manchester, and raised with three sisters by a single mother in a strict Seventh-day Adventist household. She left Manchester High School in 2011 and attended Northern Caribbean University in Mandeville until 2015, then enrolled at the University of the West Indies in Kingston and stopped before finishing. She sang at open-mic nights around Kingston, among them Jamnesia in Bull Bay, and took the name Lila Iké there.

In 2017 she signed to In.Digg.Nation Collective, the label and management company run by Protoje, and released "Biggest Fan" and "Gotti Gotti" that year, "Second Chance" in 2018, and "Where I'm Coming From" and "Sweet Inspiration" in 2019. In.Digg.Nation then signed a joint deal with Six Course and RCA covering Iké and Sevana alongside Protoje, and her debut EP The ExPerience appeared under it in May 2020. She toured Europe in 2019, playing Rototom Sunsplash and Reggae Jam.

Treasure Self Love, her first full-length album, was released in August 2025 and nominated for best reggae album; she performed at the 2026 Grammy ceremony.

Last updated November 5, 2026

Connections

Notes

  1. Davis reported the nomination for best reggae album, with Iké "the sole female nominee" in the category. Jovani Davis, "Lila Ike Set to Make Grammy History with Debut Performance," Caribbean National Weekly, January 30, 2026, https://www.caribbeannationalweekly.com/entertainment/lila-ike-set-to-make-grammy-history-with-debut-performance/.
  2. Gardy Stein, review of Lila Iké, Treasure Self Love, Reggaeville, August 22, 2025, https://www.reggaeville.com/artist-details/protoje/releases/mode/review/release/lila-ike-treasure-self-love/.
  3. Meschino calls her "the second oldest of four sisters," and Iké told her she "was raised by a single mom." Patricia Meschino, "Lila Iké Shows Her Life's Journey in 'Where I'm Coming From' Video: Premiere," Billboard, July 9, 2019, https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/lila-ike-where-im-coming-from-video-exclusive-8518949/. Corry describes "a strict religious household" without naming the church. Kristin Corry, "Lila Iké Is Singing Jamaica's New Era of Redemption Songs," Vice, May 15, 2020, https://www.vice.com/en/article/lila-ike-is-singing-jamaicas-new-era-of-redemption-songs-new-ep-the-experience/.
  4. Perry reports that she began at Northern Caribbean University in 2013, moved to Kingston in 2015, and enrolled at UWI's Mona campus to study linguistics, but "couldn't afford to do school." Kediesha Perry, "Lila Ike High on Education," Jamaica Observer, September 29, 2019, https://www.jamaicaobserver.com/2019/09/29/lila-ike-high-on-education/. Corry dates her graduation from Manchester High School to 2011. Corry, "Lila Iké Is Singing."
  5. Meschino says she sang "at open mic Saturday nights at Jamnesia, a seaside venue (located in Bull Bay, about 20 minutes outside of Kingston)." Meschino, "Lila Iké Shows Her Life's Journey." Corry says "Lila" began as a Facebook alias in high school and that in Kingston she sang as Lila Music until a Nigerian man explained the name Ikéchukwu, "power of God." Corry, "Lila Iké Is Singing." The RCA biography says she signed up for open mics while at Northern Caribbean University. "Lila Iké: Biography," RCA Records press biography, 2020, accessed October 2, 2026, https://cdn-p.smehost.net/sites/8e1f40b762984a27a20f577d99b7ac97/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Bio-Lila-Ike.pdf.
  6. Perry says she made her "official debut in April 2017 with Biggest Fan, produced by Protoje's In.Digg.Nation Collective label to which she is signed." Perry, "Lila Ike High on Education." The RCA biography dates "Second Chance" to 2018, "Where I'm Coming From" to June 7, 2019, and "Sweet Inspiration" to December 2019. "Lila Iké: Biography," RCA. In 2019, however, Protoje told Meschino that neither Iké nor Sevana was signed to the label: "I don't want to tie them into a label contract." Meschino, "Lila Iké Shows Her Life's Journey."
  7. The RCA biography calls The ExPerience her "debut EP for Six Course/RCA Records in a new partnership with In.Digg.Nation Collective." "Lila Iké: Biography," RCA. Corry's report on the EP is dated May 15, 2020. Corry, "Lila Iké Is Singing."
  8. Perry: "She did her first solo show in Europe this year, including Rototom Sunsplash and Reggae Jam." Perry, "Lila Ike High on Education."
  9. Davis reported that she would perform at the Grammys' opening ceremony. Davis, "Lila Ike Set to Make Grammy History." Rolling Stone announced the album in July 2025 as "due out August 22." Mankaprr Conteh, "Jamaican Singer Lila Iké Announces Debut Album, 'Romantic' with Masika," Rolling Stone, July 2, 2025, https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/lila-ike-debut-album-treasure-self-love-romantic-masika-1235377164/.

World of Jamaican Music: the whole map