Kidjo was born in Ouidah, Benin. Her father is Fon from Ouidah and her mother is Yoruba . She grew up listening to James Brown, Otis Redding, Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Wonder, and Santana.
By the time she was six, Kidjo was performing with her mother's theatre troupe, giving her an early appreciation for traditional music and dance. She started singing in her school band Les Sphinx and found success as a teenager with her adaptation of Miriam Makeba's "Les Trois Z" which played on national radio. She recorded the album Pretty with the Camerounese producer Ekambi Brilliant and her brother Oscar. It featured the songs Ninive, Gbe Agossi and a tribute to the singer Bella Bellow, one of her role models. The success of the album allowed her to tour all over West Africa. Continuing political conflicts in Benin prevented her from being an independent artist in her own country and led her to relocate to Paris in 1982.
While working various day jobs to pay for her tuition, Angelique studied music at the CIM, a reputable Jazz school in Paris where she met and married musician and producer Jean Hebrail with whom she has composed most of her music. She started out as a backup singer in local bands. In 1985, she became the front singer of the known Euro-African jazz/rock band Jasper van't Hof's Pili Pili. Three Pili Pili studio albums followed: Jakko(1987) Be In Two Minds (1988, produced by Marlon Klein) and Hotel Babo (1990). By the end of the 1980s, she had become one of the most popular live performers in Paris and recorded a solo album called Parakou for the Open Jazz Label.
She was then discovered in Paris by Island Records founder Chris Blackwell who signed her in 1991. She recorded four albums for Island until Chris Blackwell's departure from the label. In 2000 she was signed in New York by Columbia Records for which she recorded two albums.
Her musical influences include the Afropop, Caribbean zouk, Congolese rumba, jazz, gospel, and Latin styles; as well as her childhood idols Bella Bellow, James Brown, Aretha Franklin, Jimi Hendrix, Miriam Makeba and Carlos Santana.
She has been a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador since 2002. With UNICEF, she has traveled to many countries in Africa. Reports on her visits can be found on the UNICEF site. Kidjo founded The Batonga Foundation which gives girls a secondary school and higher education so they can take the lead in changing Africa. The foundation is doing this by granting scholarships, building secondary schools, increasing enrollment, improving teaching standards, providing school supplies, supporting mentor programs, exploring alternative education models and advocating for community awareness of the value of education for girls.
She has campaigned for Oxfam at the 2005 Hong Kong WTO meeting, for the their Fair Trade Campaign and travelled with them in North Kenya and at the border of Darfur and Chad with a group of women leaders in 2007 and contributed to the video for the In My Name Campaign with Will I Am from The Black Eyed Peas. She has hosted the Mo Ibrahim Foundation's Prize for Achievement in African Leadership in Alexandria, Egypt on November 26th, 2007 and on November 15th, 2008
Loloye
Angélique Kidjo Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Ea bolo iyo lolo yé
Nin odo lonlon
Nin hounssou déa
Nin yonnoun
Nan la vo
Lonlon nin non
Mian non dou
Sinsin dé
Lonlon déka
Moun sou nin, mian non dou o
Edou non non a
Djo bio sinsin
Léa amin déka déka n'ti
Gadé o min a, moun sou o
Eé éi yo lolo yé
Ea bolo iyo lolo yé
Amindé o lé
Lédji lonlon sé
Alébé nin towo
Nin okpo lonlon
L'agbé ya min a
Ayanbé nou yon nan wo
Aminssiamin, do la do lonlon sé
Oyan bé dé, lonlon moun lé
Assimin nin, ola pléo
Akan do towo dji
Eé éi yo lolo yé
Ea bolo iyo lolo yé
Nan lavo
Nan lavo, nan lavo
Eé éi yo lolo yé
Ea bolo iyo lolo yé
The song "Loloye" by Angélique Kidjo is a beautiful mix of West African rhythms, funky beats, and modern pop sensibilities. The lyrics of the song are in Fon, a language spoken in Benin, where Kidjo is from. The song speaks about various aspects of life, such as love, family, community, and nature.
The song opens with the repetition of "Eé éi yo lolo yé" and "Ea bolo iyo lolo yé," which are rhythmic phrases that set the tone for the entire song. The lyrics speak about how everything in life is connected, and how we should strive to be united and work towards a common goal. The lines "Nin odo lonlon / Nin hounssou déa / Nin yonnoun / Nan la vo / Lonlon nin non / Mian vé odo min / Mian non dou / Sinsin dé" can be interpreted as a call for unity and cooperation, where everyone's contribution is essential.
The next stanza talks about the importance of family and community. The line "Moun sou nin, mian non dou o" means that we should always remember our ancestors and their contribution to our lives. The song talks about how we should respect our elders and learn from their wisdom. The lines "Lédji lonlon sé / Alébé nin towo / Nin okpo lonlon / L'agbé ya min a / Ayanbé nou yon nan wo" speak about the various aspects of community life, such as music, dance, and art. The song also speaks about the importance of nature and our connection to it.
Line by Line Meaning
Eé éi yo lolo yé
A joyful expression of excitement
Ea bolo iyo lolo yé
An exclamation of celebration
Nin odo lonlon
The heart is heavy
Nin hounssou déa
The mind is confused
Nin yonnoun
The soul is restless
Nan la vo
In the midst of it all
Lonlon nin non
The heart knows
Mian vé odo min
The voice of the heart speaks
Mian non dou
The words of the mouth
Sinsin dé
Are empty
Lonlon déka
The heart is light
Moun sou nin, mian non dou o
When love is present, words are unnecessary
Edou non non a
The spirit is at peace
Djo bio sinsin
Meaningless noise
Léa amin déka déka n'ti
The heart beats with happiness
Gadé o min a, moun sou o
Looking at you, love is present
Amindé o lé
Fulfillment is close
Lédji lonlon sé
Peaceful heart
Alébé nin towo
Rooted in tradition
Nin okpo lonlon
Walking with grace
L'agbé ya min a
Seeing the beauty of life
Ayanbé nou yon nan wo
Believing in ourselves
Aminssiamin, do la do lonlon sé
Together, our peaceful hearts beat
Oyan bé dé, lonlon moun lé
Our hearts are one
Assimin nin, ola pléo
The journey continues
Akan do towo dji
Taking bold steps forward
Nan lavo
In the midst of it all
Nan lavo, nan lavo
In the midst of it all
Eé éi yo lolo yé
A joyful expression of excitement
Ea bolo iyo lolo yé
An exclamation of celebration
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: ANGELIQUE KIDJO, JEAN LOUIS PIERRE HEBRAIL
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
David Hundeyin
You can't understand the memories in my childhood attached to this song. Thank you so much for uploading it! I'm in actual tears!
Enrico Cazzulo
Can you translate it? We'd all be so grateful!
David Hundeyin
@Enrico Cazzulo [From Angelique Kidjo interview]: "Loloye" is a love song, and in that song I'm saying that when you love a man or a woman, send that person free. Love is not a jail. And love is not something you can find and buy in a market. And if you're lucky to find someone that loves you, cherish that love. Love sometimes is not enough for a couple or a friendship to last. Every single person in that relationship has to work a lot for that relationship to last for life.
Enrico Cazzulo
@David Hundeyin Thank you very much David!! Trujy a beautiful song both in the music and the meaning. If you'll have the chance to translate it we all be grateful once again!
Chukwuebuka Obijiofor
Thank you so much for the translation. I can't understand what she's saying but I feel the passion in her voice
Kolawole Babatunde
Old music never dies, still Rockies on my head like say tomorrow no day, hit me guys 2020
Astrid Pedneault
I danced with my baby on that song. (Baby #4, my youngest daughter.) When nobody was in the house but us, I would put that song on, sometimes 2-3 times in a row. Then I would just dance with my little one, feel her little body in my arms and treasure the moment. Just love. She is 25 and far away now but it is still so vivid in my mind when I hear the song. She and I talked about that today on the phone. A beautiful moment...
Gustave Pablo
My childhood song....
Juste de la nostalgie
Sacré Coeur
Vous êtes jeune
kokou mawunyo sassou
very powerful melody i've been hearing this for years but still not get enough well done Angelique