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2026 Featured Artist: Yasmeena Sharif — London Residency

Our inaugural spotlight artist is Yasmeena Sharif, a rising vocalist and USC music student whose artistry blends jazz, soul, and contemporary vocal expression. This summer, Yasmeena will travel to London to:

• Perform original music at venues across the city
• Record at the legendary Abbey Road Studios
• Write for and conduct a string quartet
• Immerse herself in London’s vibrant musical landscape

GBP’s sponsorship ensures she can fully participate in this transformative experience and return with new skills, new stories, and new artistic perspectives to share with our community.

Yasmeena Sharif Bio

Yasmeena Sharif is a jazz vocalist, composer, arranger, dancer, and actress from Newark, New Jersey. Performing on stages since she was seven years old, she has been in musicals, sang on film scores, and with big bands. Currently studying at the USC Thornton School of Music, Yasmeena is a part of several ensembles, including the Afro-Latin Jazz Ensemble, which she has written and arranged several pieces for, the USC Gospel Choir, and the Vocal Jazz Ensemble.

Getting her start in theater, Yasmeena has performed in plays and musicals, both in regional New Jersey theaters and off-Broadway. Some of her credits include Chicago (Roxie), Clue (Mrs. White), Into the Woods (Rapunzel/Cinderella), The Little Mermaid (Ariel), and Hairspray (Lil Inez). She has also filmed commercials for the Obama Foundation’s Global Girl Alliance and for the Institute of Music for Children. In addition to performing onstage, she has also worked as an Assistant Stage Manager for multiple productions at the USC School of Dramatic Arts.

Yasmeena has performed at numerous venues, in both the New York Metropolitan Area, and in Los Angeles, including at Rose Hall at Jazz at Lincoln Center as part of the Essentially Ellington Festival in 2022, The Grammy Museum, The World Stage, Birds of a Feather Jazz Club, The New School, the New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC), and the South Orange Performing Arts Center (SOPAC).

She has studied with Katie Thiroux, Kathleen Grace, Luciana Souza, Julius Tolentino, Monica Anderson, Lori Brown Mirabal, Janeece Freeman Clark, Greg Bufford, and Aaron Serfaty.

Yasmeena grew up surrounded by a strong community, and aims to create that connection during her performances. She views music as a healing mechanism, and likes to incorporate that into her work. When she’s not onstage, or working on a new arrangement, she loves to crochet, paint, and watch an episode of her favorite sitcom, Living Single.

Yasmeena Sharif in Grammy Museum 2026

Yasmeena Sharif – Sunday Gazebo Jazz – Gregory Burrus Productions

2022 Yasmeena Sharif in

Yasmeena Sharif – South Orange Gazebo Jazz – Gregory Burrus Productions