Grammy winner Angelique Kidjo says she is originally from Iseyin
Angelique Kidjo, the famous Benniose musician has told Smooth FM in Lagos State during an interview that she is from Iseyin, Oyo State.
The multiple Grammy award winner revealed that her mother told her about her Nigeria origin.
Born in Ouidah, Benin Republic, the 61-year-old globally acclaimed singer noted that she has a lot of relatives in Nigeria that she has not visited for some time.
“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 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.”
Speaking on her jet-setting and busy life, Angelique said that her daughter is not happy that she is not always available for family time.
“I have a hectic life, my own daughter just told me on the phone yesterday ‘okay, when are you coming back home, and I said not before November and she said ‘don’t forget you have a daughter though,’” she said.
On her love for the continent of Africa, she established she was not only about singing about the beauty of the continent, however, 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.”
Angelique further stipulated 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.”
