Benjamin was born and raised in New York City. She grew up in a Dominican neighborhood in Washington Heights, Manhattan and played merengue, salsa, and Latin music. As a touring musician she has performed with Missy Elliot and Alicia Keys. She has performed on four continents, for President Barack Obama’s 2009 Inauguration, and with Clark Terry, Reggie Workman, Rashied Ali, the David Murray Big Band, Vanessa Rubin, and James Blood Ulmer. She started the band Soul Squad to showcase her compositions.