Multiple Grammy Awards winner, Angélique Kidjo, has said she is a Nigerian from Iseyin, a town in Oyo State.
The legendary songstress, born in Benin Republic, made this
known in a recent interview with Smooth FM 98.1 FM, in Lagos State.
Kidjo said her mother who worked as a choreographer and
theatre director revealed it to her.
The 62-year-old entertainer and activist also claimed she
has lots of relatives acorss Nigeria who she had not seen.
She said: “My Mum told me that I am from Iseyin because when
my grandfather’s great great great great father came back from Brazil, they
found their roots in Iseyin.
“From my mother’s side, we have always been from Nigeria.
“So we have families in Abeokuta, Ibadan, Lagos, everywhere.
“I have cousins I haven’t seen a million years that I miss a
lot.”
Angélique Kpasseloko Hinto Hounsinou Kandjo Manta Zogbin
Kidjo known as Angélique Kidjo, is a Beninese-American singer-songwriter, actress,
and activist who is noted for her diverse musical influences and creative music
videos.
Kidjo was born into a family of performing artists. Her
father was a musician, and her mother worked as a choreographer and theatre
director. Kidjo has won five Grammy Awards.
Kidjo was born in Ouidah, French Dahomey, in what is now
Benin. Her father is from the Fon people of Ouidah and her mother from the
Yoruba people in Nigeria.
She grew up listening to Yoruba and Beninese traditional
music, Miriam Makeba, Hugh Masekela, James Brown, Manu Dibango, Otis Redding,
Jimi Hendrix, Fela Kuti, Stevie Wonder, Osibisa, and Santana. By the time she
was six, Kidjo was performing with her mother's theatre troupe, giving her an
early appreciation for traditional music and dance.