Benin 
Hackney Colliery Band book in shows at Glastonbury and Barbican Centre
7 years ago
Angélique Kidjo is a Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter, actress, and activist, celebrated for fusing diverse musical styles and advocating for women's and girls' empowerment.
Interested in booking Angelique Kidjo?
Request A ShowCollaborated with super producer Jeff Bhasker (known for working with Rihanna, Kanye West, Harry Styles, Bruno Mars, Drake, Jay-Z) to create 'Remain In Light', a project reimagining Talking Heads' landmark 1980 album.
Featured collaborations with rising African stars Burna Boy, Sampa the Great, and Yemi Alade on her album 'Mother Nature'.
Appointed as a UNICEF ambassador, she shares insights on blending cultures, empowering women and youth, and her mission to bring Africa to the world. She has campaigned with UNICEF on various initiatives, including the 'Give the Gift of Life' campaign to eradicate Tetanus.
Partnered with Cobhams Emmanuel Asuquo to produce her first album, Aṣa, which won the French Constantin Award in 2008.
Collaborated with Philip Glass on 'IFÉ, Three Yoruba Songs', which premiered at the Philharmonie de Paris with the Orchestre Lamoureux.
Featured collaborations with icons like Bono, Alicia Keys, John Legend, Branford Marsalis, and Carlos Santana across her career.
Partnered with Jeff Bhasker for her album 'Remain In Light'. This project was a re-imagination of Talking Heads' 1980 album, deeply influenced by West African music, notably Fela Kuti's Afrobeat.
The Batonga Foundation provided 222,000 students in Benin's poorest regions with TOMS shoes for their walk to school.
Collaborated with many other artists as part of Band Aid 30, the 30th-anniversary version of the 1980s supergroup.
Contributor to the Art Of Saving A Life Campaign initiated by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Sang Afirika at the opening of the United Nations General Assembly in New York in support of the launch of the Global Goals for Sustainable Development, performing alongside Shakira.
Performed Hans Zimmer's arrangement of Imagine along with John Legend, Keith Urban, and Alejandro Sanz during the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games Opening Ceremony.
Angélique Kpasseloko Hinto Hounsinou Kandjo Manta Zogbin Kidjo was born in Ouidah, French Dahomey, now Benin. She began performing at age six in her mother’s theater troupe and later found success as a teenager with her school band, Les Sphinx. Political conflicts in Benin led her to relocate to Paris in 1983, where she initially planned to study human rights law but ultimately pursued music at the CIM jazz school. There, she met and married musician and producer Jean Hebrail, who became a frequent collaborator. After working as a backup singer, she became the lead vocalist for Jasper van ‘t Hof’s Euro-African jazz/rock band Pili Pili, releasing three studio albums during the late 1980s. Her solo album, ‘Parakou’, gained her recognition in Paris, leading to a record deal with Island Records in 1991.
Kidjo’s career expanded globally with albums like ‘Logozo’ (1991), which topped the Billboard World Albums chart, and ‘Ayé’ (1994), earning her first Grammy nomination for the single “Agolo.” In 1998, she embarked on a trilogy of albums—’Oremi’, ‘Black Ivory Soul’, and ‘Oyaya!’—exploring the African roots of music in the Americas. In 2007, she released ‘Djin Djin’, featuring collaborations with artists such as Josh Groban, Carlos Santana, and Alicia Keys. This album won a Grammy for Best Contemporary World Music Album and an NAACP Image Award. Her album ‘Õÿö’ (2010) paid tribute to her childhood music, including songs by Miriam Makeba and covers of Aretha Franklin and Curtis Mayfield tracks.
Her album ‘Eve’ (2014), dedicated to African women, debuted at number one on the Billboard World Music chart and earned a Grammy Award for Best Global Music Album. Subsequent albums, including ‘Angélique Kidjo Sings with the Orchestre Philharmonique Du Luxembourg’ (2015) and ‘Remain in Light’ (2018), continued to receive critical acclaim and Grammy recognition. Her 2019 tribute album to Celia Cruz, ‘Celia’, also received a Grammy. During the COVID-19 pandemic, she released ‘Mother Nature’ (2021), featuring collaborations with emerging African artists. Kidjo has also been a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador since 2002 and founded The Batonga Foundation in 2006 to support education and empowerment for girls in Sub-Saharan Africa. In 2025, she became the first Black African artist to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
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