Nigerian singer Yemi Alade made her second appearance on the third season of Coke Studio Africa this year. She left a huge impact after matching up the stage presence of two of Kenya’s biggest music acts: Sauti Sol and Jua Cali. Aside from the usual reports on whom she is collaborating with or dating, she rarely talks about her personal life.
Coke Studio Africa finally got to squeeze some personal gist out of the sassy singer! Here goes:
1. Her first Stage Name
She rose to fame when she won the Peak Talent Show in 2009 and decided to make a career soon after. Before then, she was part of a girl group called Naughty Spices and her act was known as Ginger.
2. Daughter of a policeman
Her father was a police commissioner and naturally he did not entertain nonsense.
“I was not even allowed to attend my friend's birthday parties. One time my mother and I had even gone shopping for a dress to wear at a friend's party. I was all ready to leave the house when he told me that I wasn't going anywhere,” she recalls.
She studied Geography to please her father, but was still into music.
Watch Yemi Alade and Jua Cali perform Mama Africa on Coke Studio Africa season III
3. Lied about career of choice – at first!
When she was younger she always spoke about how she wanted to be a surgeon, an aeronautical engineer or lawyer because she could not afford to annoy her father by talking about her music ambitions.
4.Johnny was inspired by personal experience.
The song was a product of a personal experience in the hands of a particular ‘Johnny’ whose list of girls was longer than what the song could accommodate. She has since moved on.
5. R&B influenced her big time
The music from 90s music kings and queens like such as BoyzIIMen, Mariah Carey, Destiny's Child, and R. Kelly influenced her, a lot.
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