Born in New York City's borough of Brooklyn, Bronx raised, she began her musical career in the R&B group 4KaST.

"[4] Sharissa joined the group Triple Dose as a teenager,[1][2] and became part of the "urban vocal quartet" 4Kast in 1995.

[7] Sharissa contributed "Bring Out The Freak" (featuring ILL Bread) to the 1996 compilation album, The Ultimate Mix.

[10] Sharissa became a backing vocalist for a number of singers, including Wyclef Jean, Beanie Sigel, Father MC, and Carl Thomas.

[1][13] Ayana Byrd of Vibe called its sound a "brand of gritty, hip hop-influenced R&B, and its lyrics revolve around tales of love, heartbreak, and independence"; according to Bryce Wilson, the album was inspired by 1970s music.

[2] Jason Birchmeier of AllMusic identified No Half Steppin' as part of Motown's attempt "to break new artists into the urban market", and the label was presenting Sharissa in a style similar to Mary J. Blige and Aaliyah.

[19] Sharissa performed material from the album at the Blazin' Hip-Hop and R&B Concert in Pittsburgh on June 16, 2002,[20] and released a mixtape version.

[30] Sharissa was featured on "You Say Keep It Gangsta" with Butch Cassidy on Wyclef Jean's third studio album, Masquerade, which was released on June 18, 2002.

[35] Sociology professor Geoff Harkness wrote in a 2015 article that Yanesha is an example of the bad-girl archetype, which he defined as "sexually insatiable females who emphasize their physical attributes and downplay other aspects of their identity".

[36] On November 11, 2003, Sharissa contributed "Take Me as I Am" to the soundtrack of the 2003 romantic comedy film Love Actually; it features Wyclef Jean.

[25] Baria A. Razzaq of Vibe criticized the song: "Wyclef Jean misleads her into regurgitating one of his ditties from The Carnival era".

[23] Before Every Beat of My Heart, Sharissa had released "Guess Who's Back", "See If I Won't", "You Make It Easy", "I'm Heat" and "Drop on Me" as singles.

[50] Sharissa designed a MaDame Bluez & Co. line of "street couture" in 2005[45] and participated in the reality competition show, Survive This!