Artist page

Angélique Kidjo, born on July 14, 1960, in Ouidah, Benin, grew up in a musical family, with her mother as a choreographer and theater director and her brothers as instrumentalists. She began singing and dancing at the age of six in her mother’s company and later joined her brothers' group, the Kidjo Brothers Band. Influenced by the rich musical heritage of Benin, she absorbed traditional folk styles, love songs, and the new urban African music emerging from South Africa, as well as Western artists like James Brown. Kidjo's early career saw her recording an adaptation of a song by the renowned South African vocalist Miriam Makeba, which led to her first hits and a tour in the Ivory Coast. Her career took off when she moved to Paris, encouraged by Cameroonian producer Ekambi Brilliant. In Paris during the 1980s, a vibrant scene for new African music emerged, allowing artists to blend their roots with Western styles. In her early days in Paris, Kidjo sang and recorded with a group and later joined the jazz-influenced band Pili Pili, with whom she recorded two jazz albums and performed at the Montreux Festival in 1986. That same year, she collaborated with a bass player and composer, developing her own music. Through her work in Paris, she connected with various African and Antillean musicians, forming her own group and releasing her first solo album, "Parakou."

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