Sevana pleads guilty
Published:Monday | October 31, 2022 | 4:42 PMYasmine Peru/Senior Gleaner Writer
Reggae singer Sevana this morning pleaded guilty to a charge of death by dangerous driving and will be sentenced on November 17.
Sevana, whose real name is Anna Blake, appeared before Justice Courtney Daye at the Westmoreland Circuit Court for the start of her trial. It was in January that Judge Steve Walters set an October 31 mention date in the Westmoreland Circuit Court.
The 30-year-old singer, who is being represented by attorney-at-law Everton Dewar, was charged following an accident in May 2021.
The police report that Sevana was travelling along the Scott Cove main road in Whitehouse, Westmoreland, when the Honda City motor car she was driving collided with a Honda Fit going in the opposite direction. Ordia Cordiel, who was in the Honda Fit, sustained severe injuries and was admitted to the Black River Hospital. She died on May 30. The police charged Sevana on June 1.
The police report also stated that Sevana's licence was issued on May 17, one week before the accident. She was officially charged on June 1, 2021.
Westmoreland-born Sevana first came to prominence in 2008 when she entered Digicel Rising Stars as part of the girl group SLR. They placed third. SLR broke up the following year and Sevana went on a hiatus from music.
In 2014, she resumed writing and performing and was featured on reggae singer Protoje's single Sudden Flight on his album Ancient Future. She also began to regularly appear with his band, Indiggnation, in live performances and later toured with them in July 2015. Protoje signed Sevana under his In.Digg.Nation Collective label, but she has since severed ties with the entity. She released her eponymous EP in 2016.
In July, Sevana, who is known for uplifting songs, released If You Only Knew, the first single on her second EP, Be Somebody. It was her major label debut.
Sevana has also scored big with singles such as Mango and Man Down, and her career enjoyed a big boost when Mango was licensed for use in the soundtrack for the TV show Big Sky, which airs on ABC.
Sevana, who is on $400,000 bail, was fingerprinted today and bound over to return to court on November 17.