SistaTrel- ONUTSSBio
Growing up in a household where it was as common as taking a breath, Detrel Howell was exposed from as early as she can remember to the music of artists such as The Carpenters, Santana, Mandrill, Grover Washington Jr., Patti Labelle and The Bluebells, The Fifth Dimension, Stevie Wonder, The Jackson Five, Frankie Lymon and so many others. From these experiences, she acquired her late father’s love of diversity in music. That love led her to advocating, to anyone who will listen, for many artists that very few had ever heard of. Lacking airplay on major radio stations, Detrel would find herself practically begging friends and family members to listen to B-Side artists whose music she would come across during her days working at a local record store.

Fast forward twenty years, skipping over the days when she sacrificed sleep to work as a personal assistant for a young, talented comedian or called the A&R departments of many, now defunct record companies to invite reps out to showcases that featured some of the artists she was working with. Detrel has always loved to write and her work has appeared in various newsletters, magazines and internet publications. Her role as the Vice President of DaraKyree Entertainment, a Bronx based company founded by Brett McCall and Greg Kelly led her to connecting with spoken word artists and exceptionally talented musicians, as well as hosting a monthly showcase on Harlem’s famed 125th Street. Most importantly, Detrel was presented with the opportunity in the year of 2000 to interview Rahsaan Patterson, her favorite male singer for DaraKyree Entertainment’s underground newspaper, “Off The Plantation.” Sitting with Rahsaan at the famed, Electric Lady Studios and having him strip away layers of shrouded feelings about the music industry helped Detrel to process some of the goals she set for herself in the entertainment industry.
Shortly after leaving DaraKyree Enertainment, Detrel met Reggie Stewart who had solid connections in the gospel community. Detrel worked for a short time with Reggie at his Gospel Direct company which published a few newsletters that included album reviews, news and performance dates of some of gospel’s biggest and brightest artists. Finally realizing that the time had come to put her mark on what she’d already been doing, Detrel went on to establish DMH Public Relations, a Public Relations firm that ultimately led to the introduction of Musa Moore, a Brooklyn based retired rap artist turned entertainment/political figure. Partnering with Moore at his Moore Flavor Entertainment company, Detrel worked fervently behind the scenes to establish their small roster of artists (Xklusive, Scorp and Chinahblac) as “ones to watch” around the NY area.

Today, Detrel works alongside Pamela Nichols at their company, One Nation Under The Soul Shack, a promotional/marketing company founded in 2006. She is also a contributing writer for SoulTracks.com, PlanetSoul.com, Rhythmflow.net, where her column "Inspirational Rhythms" focuses on the world of gospel music and the African American Social Scene.