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
Pearls
Angélique Kidjo Lyrics
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Scraping for pearls on the roadside
There's a force stronger than nature
Keeps her will alive
This is how she's dying
She's dying to survive
Don't know what she is made of
She cries to the heaven above
There is a stone in my heart
She lives a life she didn't choose
And it hurts like brand new shoes
And it hurts like brand new shoes
There is a woman in Somalia
The sun gives her no mercy
The same sky we lay under
Burns her to the bone
Long as afternoon shadows
It's gonna take her to get home
Each grain carefully wrapped up
Pearls for her little girl
Hallelujah
Hallelujah
She cries to the heaven above
There is a stone in my heart
She lives in a world she didn't choose
And it hurts like brand new shoes
And it hurts like brand new shoes
The lyrics to Angelique Kidjo's song "Pearls" are about the struggles of a woman in Somalia who scrapes for pearls on the roadside to survive. Despite the harsh conditions and unforgiving sun, she persists and remains determined, with a will stronger than the force of nature itself. The first verse sets the tone for the rest of the song, highlighting the woman's strength and grit even in the face of such adversity.
The chorus brings in the woman's perspective, as she cries out to the heavens for help and laments the heavy burden she carries in her heart. Her life in Somalia is not one she chose, but rather something she had to endure. She compares this pain to that of wearing brand new shoes, implying that it is a constant niggling discomfort that never truly goes away.
The second verse of the song continues to paint a picture of the woman's life, with the sun burning her skin and making her journey home even more difficult. Despite all this, she carefully collects each grain of pearl and thinks of her little girl, showing her resilience and determination in the face of terrible circumstances.
Overall, "Pearls" is a poignant and powerful song that shines a light on the struggles of women in Somalia and other similar communities. It highlights the incredible strength and willpower that exists within these women and encourages us all to reflect on our own privilege and position in the world.
Line by Line Meaning
There is a woman in Somalia
The song starts by introducing a woman in Somalia who is struggling to survive.
Scraping for pearls on the roadside
The woman struggles to earn money by picking up pearls from the roadside.
There's a force stronger than nature
Despite facing such adverse conditions, she is determined to survive due to an inner strength.
Keeps her will alive
She manages to keep her will alive in the toughest of situations.
This is how she's dying
Despite her willpower, the struggle for survival is severely affecting her health.
She's dying to survive
The woman is sacrificing her life in her fight to stay alive.
Don't know what she is made of
It's hard to fathom the amount of strength this woman possesses.
I would like to be that brave
The artist admires the woman's bravery and would like to be as courageous.
She cries to the heaven above
In her moments of pain and suffering, she prays for help.
There is a stone in my heart
The struggles of the woman deeply affect the artist, leaving her heart heavy.
She lives a life she didn't choose
The woman's life is full of struggles that she didn't choose for herself.
And it hurts like brand new shoes
The pain of her struggles is like wearing new shoes that hurt with each step.
The sun gives her no mercy
The harsh sun is unforgiving to her as she continues to work.
The same sky we lay under
The sky we see as peaceful and serene is just as harsh for her.
Burns her to the bone
The sun's heat is so intense that she feels it deeply and it affects her bones.
Long as afternoon shadows
Her work continues into the afternoons, until the sun begins to set.
It's gonna take her to get home
Her day's work is so long that it takes a while to make it back home.
Each grain carefully wrapped up
The woman is careful with her work and is meticulous in wrapping up each pearl.
Pearls for her little girl
The woman's hard work is for her daughter, so she can have a better life.
Hallelujah
A cry of praise to thank God for helping the woman survive.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Helen Adu, Andrew Hale
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Kwame Atoapoma Oteanankanduro
on Summertime
Awesome! Haa, I want the lyrics in the language she sang in.