I’m From Iseyin, Oyo State — Grammy Awards Winner, Angelique Kidjo Reveals
Legendary singer and multiple Grammy Awards winner, Angelique Kidjo has revealed she is a Nigerian who hails from Iseyin, a town in Oyo State.
61-year-old Kidjo, who made this revelation in a recent interview with Smooth FM in Lagos State, was born in the Benin Republic and said her mother made the revelation to her.
She also claimed that she has lots of relatives in Nigeria even though she doesn’t visit them often.
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In her words: “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”, she added.
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While speaking about her love for Africa, she said she was not only concerned with singing about the beauty of the continent but also showing the happiness the people of Africa radiate.
“It’s just that I love to sing. I love to bring Africa to the world. The beauty of Africa, not the music that people are very content about seeing and talking about. Africa is not about that because I grow up in a country that is poor but people were very happy,” she noted.
Kidjo further added that she wants the world to see how powerful African women are.
“The women of Africa are the backbone of this continent and they are beautiful. So, I want the world to see that”, Kidjo stated.