Khadja Nin

Last updated

Khadja Nin
Khadja Nin Cannes 2018.jpg
Khadja Nin at the 2018 Cannes Film Festival.
Background information
Birth nameKhadja Nin
Born (1959-06-27) 27 June 1959 (age 65)
Bujumbura, Ruanda-Urundi
Genres Afro-pop
OccupationSinger
Years active1980s–present
Labels BMG

Khadja Nin (born 27 June 1959) is a Burundian singer and musician.

Contents

Nin was born in Burundi, the youngest of a family of eight. Her father was a senior diplomat and Minister of the Interior of the Kingdom of Burundi. [1] She studied music at an early age like most of her brothers and sisters. With her exceptional singing voice, at the age of seven she became one of the lead vocalists in the Bujumbura choir and performed in the local cathedral. She left Burundi for Zaire in 1975 and married in 1978. In 1980 she emigrated to Belgium with her two-year-old son. In 1985 she obtained a contract with BMG. Her second album, a 1994 release entitled Ya Pili , was critically acclaimed.

Her breakthrough came in 1996 with her widely popular album Sambolera , which was sung in Swahili, Kirundi, and French. In 1997 she performed the song "Sailing" in a duet with Montserrat Caballé on the album Friends For Life . She successfully used a blend of African rhythms and modern pop to create her own unique brand of music. One of her most popular songs is Sina Mali, Sina Deni, a translated cover version of Stevie Wonder's song Free. [2]

The first album was released in 1992, sung in Swahili. But it is best known in France in 1995 with the title Sambolera Mayi Son, the title of the second album, Ya Pili (The second). The third album is a compilation of old and new titles. Jeanne Moreau makes the clip illustrating her song Mama, where she talks about her mother, on her fourth album Ya ... . The texts of this album are in Swahili or Kirundi (for the chorus of the title Mama). The album also includes a cover of a piece by Gabonese musician Pierre Akendengué, Africa Obota, and a song by Stevie Wonder, "Free" that she renamed "Sina mali, sina deni" (I am neither rich nor indebted). Another piece pays tribute to Nelson Mandela, and a song calls for easing the embargo imposed on Burundi.

In January 2000, she sang at AccorHotels Arena (at the time Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy) with Sting and Cheb Mami. She remarried in 2006 to Belgian racing driver Jacky Ickx, and they settled in Monaco. In this marriage, she has had a son who lives in Belgium.

In 2018, she was a jury member at the Cannes Film Festival, under the presidency of Cate Blanchett, alongside actresses Léa Seydoux and Kristen Stewart, director Ava DuVernay, actor Chang Chen and directors Robert Guédiguian, Denis Villeneuve and Andrey Zvyagintsev.

Discography

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stevie Wonder</span> American musician (born 1950)

Stevland Hardaway Morris, known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer. One of the most acclaimed and influential musicians of the 20th century, he is credited as a pioneer and influence by musicians across a range of genres that include R&B, pop, soul, gospel, funk, and jazz. A virtual one-man band, Wonder's use of synthesizers and other electronic musical instruments during the 1970s reshaped the conventions of contemporary R&B. He also helped drive such genres into the album era, crafting his LPs as cohesive and consistent, in addition to socially conscious statements with complex compositions. Blind since shortly after his birth, Wonder was a child prodigy who signed with Motown's Tamla label at the age of 11, where he was given the professional name Little Stevie Wonder.

<i>Songs in the Key of Life</i> 1976 studio album by Stevie Wonder

Songs in the Key of Life is the eighteenth studio album by American singer, songwriter and musician Stevie Wonder. A double album, it was released on September 28, 1976, by Tamla Records, a division of Motown. It was recorded primarily at Crystal Sound studio in Hollywood, with some sessions recorded at the Record Plant in Hollywood, the Record Plant in Sausalito, and The Hit Factory in New York City; final mixing was conducted at Crystal Sound. The album has been regarded by music journalists as the culmination of Wonder's "classic period" of recording.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Music of Burundi</span>

Burundi is a Central African nation that is closely linked with Rwanda, geographically, historically and culturally. The drum such as the karyenda is one of central importance. Internationally, the country has produced the music group Royal Drummers of Burundi.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sir Duke</span> 1977 single by Stevie Wonder

"Sir Duke" is a song composed and performed by Stevie Wonder from his 1976 album Songs in the Key of Life. Released as a single in 1977, the track topped the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and Black Singles charts, and reached number two in the UK Singles Chart, his joint biggest hit there at the time. Billboard ranked it as the No. 18 song of 1977.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lynda Laurence</span> American singer (born 1949)

Lynda Laurence is an American singer. The youngest daughter of Louise and Ira Tucker, a gospel songwriter, producer, and singer, Laurence's siblings are Sundray Tucker and Ira Tucker Jr.

<i>Björk</i> (album) 1977 studio album by Björk Guðmundsdóttir

Björk is the only studio album by Icelandic singer Björk as a child singer, released in December 1977 by Fálkinn. In 1976, Björk appeared on Icelandic radio singing "I Love to Love" through the music school she attended, which led her to a record deal and the release, with the help of stepfather Sævar, of her first solo album in 1977.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rokia Traoré</span> Malian musician (born 1974)

Rokia Traoré is a Malian-born singer, songwriter and guitarist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Isn't She Lovely</span> 1976 promotional single by Stevie Wonder

"Isn't She Lovely" is a song by Stevie Wonder from his 1976 album, Songs in the Key of Life. The lyrics celebrate the birth of his daughter, Aisha Morris. Wonder collaborated on the song with Harlem songwriter and studio owner Burnetta "Bunny" Jones.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Habib Koité</span> Malian musician (born 1958)

Habib Koité is a Senegalian-born Malian musician, singer, songwriter and griot based in Mali. His band, Bamada, was a supergroup of West African musicians, which included Kélétigui Diabaté on balafon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fingertips</span> 1963 single by Stevie Wonder

"Fingertips" is a 1963 hit single recorded live by "Little" Stevie Wonder for Motown's then Tamla label.

Lula Mae Hardaway was an American songwriter and the mother of musician Stevie Wonder. She spent her early adult life in Saginaw, Michigan, but from 1975 until her death in 2006, lived in Los Angeles, California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Zap Mama</span> Belgian-Congolese Afro-pop Musician

Zap Mama is a Belgian singer-songwriter, performer, composer, lyricist, activist, video artist and ethno-vocal therapist born in the Democratic Republic of Congo, raised in Belgium. Zap Mama sings polyphonic and afro-pop music, a harmonic music with a mixture of infused African vocal techniques, urban, hip hop with emphasis on voice. In order to explore and discover the vast world of oral tradition music, she travels throughout Africa, learning, exchanging and sharing information about healing songs, lullabies, mourning, and practising polyphony with griots (bards), Tartit tuareg women, Dogons, Peulhs, Pygmies, Mangbetus, Zulus and others.

Adamantia Stamatopoulou, known as Mando, is a Greek singer and songwriter. She was born and raised in Piraeus by her jazz pianist father, Nikos Stamatopoulos and a classic soprano opera mother, Mary Apergi.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Overjoyed (Stevie Wonder song)</span> 1985 single by Stevie Wonder

"Overjoyed" is a hit single written and performed by American R&B singer-songwriter Stevie Wonder on the Tamla (Motown) label from his 1985 album In Square Circle. The single peaked at No. 24 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in April 1986, remaining in the Top 40 for six weeks. In addition, "Overjoyed" was a No. 1 hit on the adult contemporary chart, the eighth of his career. An alternate single release featured an instrumental version on the B-side.

"Jambo Bwana" is a Kenyan pop song also popular in Tanzania. It was first released in 1982 by Kenyan band Them Mushrooms, and later covered by a number of other groups and artists, including Mombasa Roots, Safari Sound Band, Khadja Nin, Adam Solomon, Mani Kollengode, and the German group Boney M. Some versions come under different titles, such as "Jambo Jambo" and "Hakuna Matata".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2013 Mnet Asian Music Awards</span> Popular music awards

The 2013 Mnet Asian Music Awards took place on November 22, 2013, at AsiaWorld-Arena in Hong Kong. The ceremony was the fourth consecutive Mnet Asian Music Awards to occur outside of South Korea

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Commune of Buyenzi</span> Commune of Bujumbura Maire Province, Burundi

The commune of Buyenzi is a historic commune (District) of Bujumbura Mairie Province in western Burundi. The district is known for its Swahili heritage and influence not just in Bujumbura but Burundi as a whole. Buyenzi communie is laid on a grid plan and has 25 horizontal numbered streets.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">California Roll (song)</span> 2015 single by Snoop Dogg featuring Stevie Wonder

"California Roll" is a song by American rapper Snoop Dogg, featuring vocals from fellow American musicians Stevie Wonder and Pharrell Williams, the latter of whom goes uncredited, but produced the song alongside Chad Hugo as The Neptunes. It was released on May 5, 2015 as the third and final single from Snoop Dogg's thirteenth studio album Bush (2015), with the record labels i am OTHER and Columbia Records. Williams is credited as a co-writer of the song, along with Snoop Dogg and James Fauntleroy. The song cover art features model Afiya Bennett.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cécile Kayirebwa</span> Rwandan singer (born 1946)

Cécile Kayirebwa is a Rwandan singer. She brought her family up in Belgium, but she has toured and published albums. She is known for singing about Rwanda. She sued Rwandan radio stations in 2013 for failing to pay her royalties.

References

  1. "Biographie de Khadja Nin". Radio France Internationale (in French). May 2018. Retrieved 29 March 2023.
  2. Wiser, Danny (19 August 2020). "BURUNDI: Sambolera - Khadja Nin". 200worldalbums.com. Retrieved 9 October 2023.