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
Open Your Eyes feat. Kelly Price
Angélique Kidjo Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Days pass and this emptiness fills my heart
When I want to run away
I drive off in my car
But whichever way I go
I come back to the place you are
All my instincts, they return
Without a noise, without my pride
I reach out from the inside
In your eyes
The light the heat
In your eyes
I am complete
In your eyes
I see the doorway to a thousand churches
In your eyes
The resolution of all the fruitless searches
In your eyes
I see the light and the heat
In your eyes
Oh, I want to be that complete
I want to touch the light
The heat I see in your eyes
Love, I don't like to see so much pain
So much wasted and this moment keeps slipping away
I get so tired of working so hard for our survival
I look to the time with you to keep me awake and alive
And all my instincts, they return
And the grand facade, so soon will burn
Without a noise, without my pride
I reach out from the inside
In your eyes
The light the heat
In your eyes
I am complete
In your eyes
I see the doorway to a thousand churches
In your eyes
The resolution of all the fruitless searches
In your eyes
I see the light and the heat
In your eyes
Oh, I want to be that complete
I want to touch the light,
The heat I see in your eyes
In your eyes, in your eyes
In your eyes, in your eyes
In your eyes, in your eyes
"Open Your Eyes" by Angelique Kidjo is a romantic love song about finding completeness and connection through a shared gaze. The first verse talks about feeling lost and empty, but ultimately being drawn back to the person that brings fulfillment and meaning. The idea of running away is contrasted with the inevitable return to the place where the singer truly belongs. The second verse continues with the theme of instinctual attraction, describing the grand facade that will eventually fall away and the need to reach out from the inside for genuine connection.
The chorus - "In your eyes / The light the heat / In your eyes / I am complete" - emphasizes the idea of finding completeness through the shared experience of looking into someone's eyes. The eyes are seen as the gateway to understanding and experiencing the world, and the image of a thousand churches implies that there is a spiritual aspect to the connection. The resolution of fruitless searches suggests that this connection is worth the effort and the challenges that come with it. The repeated refrain of "in your eyes" emphasizes the central importance of this connection to the singer's sense of self and purpose.
Overall, "Open Your Eyes" is a beautiful and heartfelt song about the search for connection and completeness. Kidjo's voice is powerful and emotive, adding to the richness and depth of the lyrics.
Line by Line Meaning
Love I get so lost, sometimes
At times, I feel really overwhelmed with love, to the point where I don't know what to do next.
Days pass and this emptiness fills my heart
Despite time passing by, I still feel empty inside because love has not yet been fulfilled.
When I want to run away
During hard times when I want to give up and escape from it all.
I drive off in my car
I physically move myself away from the challenging situation.
But whichever way I go
Regardless of where I go or what I do, I cannot escape from the love within me.
I come back to the place you are
My heart leads me back to the person I love the most.
And the grand facade, so soon will burn
Despite external appearances, what is truly important (the loved one) cannot be hidden and will eventually shine through.
Without a noise, without my pride
Without drawing attention or boasting, I will humbly approach my loved one.
In your eyes
The light the heat
In your eyes
I am complete
Through your eyes I see the passion and love within you, which makes me feel whole and complete as a person.
In your eyes
I see the doorway to a thousand churches
In your eyes
The resolution of all the fruitless searches
I see the answers to all of my questions and doubts within you, as well as a pathway to true meaning and purpose in life.
In your eyes
Oh, I want to be that complete
I want to touch the light
The heat I see in your eyes
I aspire to be as complete and passionate as you are, and I yearn to experience the love that I see within your eyes.
Love, I don't like to see so much pain
So much wasted and this moment keeps slipping away
I cannot stand to see so much suffering and heartache, and I am worried that time is slipping away without fulfilling our love.
I get so tired of working so hard for our survival
I look to the time with you to keep me awake and alive
The challenges of life can be exhausting, but I find strength in our love and cherish the time I spend with you.
In your eyes
The light the heat
In your eyes
I am complete
Your eyes alone complete me and provide warmth that gives me all of the love I need.
In your eyes
I see the doorway to a thousand churches
In your eyes
The resolution of all the fruitless searches
You are the answer to all of my questions and doubts, and lead me towards what I truly need in life.
In your eyes
Oh, I want to be that complete
I want to touch the light,
The heat I see in your eyes
I strive to achieve the same completeness I see within you, and to feel the passion that emanates from your being.
In your eyes, in your eyes
In your eyes, in your eyes
In your eyes, in your eyes
You are everything I could ever want, and I find true happiness and fulfillment through gazing into your loving eyes.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: PETER GABRIEL
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@4EverNairobi
THIS CHIC IS A TRUE ARTIST LOVE HER VOICE... AND HER BACKGROUND SINGERS HARMONIZING PERFECTLY SIMPLY PUT EVERYTHING...
@Cozmic_Hates_Buds
This is the beautifulist song ever❤️❤️
@Jansoti
Завораживающий голос, глубокие слова. Песня бальзам на душу...
@josemartinez6212
Agree to all coments, I knew this lady 20 years ago More or less at PBS show IN SESSIONS, love her works since then, Greetings to all.
@gramcoinc
Great recording, wonderful show at the Aladdin in Portland. A pure gem.
@onamemmet
Glad someone finally uploaded this beauty. Now to let others know to check it out...
@abdulkabore3183
Couldn't find this powerful song everywhere...finally you uploaded it. Thank you...awesome
@annecrabie7038
splendide
@eilisemurray8738
I love this song . This is my favorite singer
@silaszinsou4549
vous êtes mauvais...pkw elle n'a pas eu assez de j'aime pour cette magnifique chanson...c'est bizarre...j'adore de trop ce son..bravo Angelique..c'est du waooh