TRACKLIST
Bando [orchestral] feat. Pharrell and Quavo
Aye Kan feat. Ayra Starr
No Stopping Us
Fall On Me feat. PJ Morton
Oyaya feat. Nile Rodgers and IZA
Superwoman feat. Dadju
I'm On Fire feat. The Cavemen.
You Can
Kakua feat. Diamond Platnumz
Sunlight To My Soul feat. Soweto Gospel Choir
For Me feat. Charlie Wilson
Big Heart
Jerusalema
Joy feat. Davido
Nadi Balance feat. Fally Ipupa, The Cavemen, Sheila Maurice-Grey
Malaika feat. Florent Pagny
Bando feat. Pharrell and Quavo
PARLOPHONE /WARNER MUSIC
HOPE!!, Angelique Kidjo’s new album is available now (Parlophone / Warner Music). The full-length follow-up to 2021’s GRAMMY-winning Mother Nature, HOPE!! positions Kidjo once again as one of Africa’s most influential and inspiring artists. Kidjo offers up a revelatory body of work across 16 new recordings, transmitting an unbridled joy that also serves as a unifying force, a conduit for healing, and a much-needed antidote to despair in troubled times.
Hope!! also finds Kidjo collaborating with a wide range of artists and reflects a new partnership with Pharrell — who is not only featured but produced three songs on the album — and recently outfitted her in custom Louis Vuitton for the GRAMMY Awards last month. Guests including Quavo, Ayra Starr, Davido, Nile Rodgers, Charlie Wilson, IZA, and PJ Morton appear on the album, which Kidjo has dedicated to her late mother.
MUSIC VIDEOS
Angélique Kidjo has released HOPE!!, her exhilarating new album out now via Parlophone / Warner Music. The full-length follow-up to 2021’s GRAMMY-winning Mother Nature, HOPE!! is a groove-heavy, galvanizing body of work that channels unbridled joy as a unifying force—an antidote to despair and a conduit for healing in troubled times.
Dedicated to Kidjo’s late mother Yvonne, the album finds the 5-time GRAMMY-winning global icon expanding her world-spanning sound across 16 new recordings that boldly transcend genre while showcasing her larger-than-life presence and captivating voice. HOPE!! is packed with major collaborations, including Pharrell Williams, Quavo, Ayra Starr, Davido, Nile Rodgers, Charlie Wilson, IZA, PJ Morton, The Cavemen, Fally Ipupa, Dadju, Diamond Platnumz, and more.
On her newest single, "Sunlight To My Soul" (July 12 - Parlophone), five-time Grammy Award winner Angélique Kidjo collaborates again with some of the biggest names in music.
This time, she teams up with legendary songwriter Diane Warren, writer of such iconic hits as "Rhythm of the Night," "If I Could Turn Back Time," and "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing," and the most nominated songwriter in Oscar history.
Together with Nigerian afrobeat producer Shizzi (Ed Sheeran, Fireboy DML, Sean Kingston), they blend African rhythms and sounds, enhanced by the captivating and inspirational voices of the Soweto Gospel Choir. Angélique uses her incredible voice, beginning with a crescendo from the first seconds, to build a rise in power that envelops the audience in warmth and joy. Diane Warren’s lyrics add a touch of courage and optimism, making every listener feel connected to the light.
On August 30, 2024, Angélique Kidjo, the multi-Grammy Award winner and 2023 Polar Music Prize recipient, released her new single and video "JOY" featuring Afrobeats superstar Davido. This marks their second collaboration, following their work on "NA MONEY" from Davido's 2023 album, Timeless. "JOY," recorded in New York City, showcases their powerful musical bond, blending Yoruba and English lyrics to convey themes of positivity and resilience.
On 8/30/24, artist, activist, multi-Grammy-Award winner and 2023 Polar Music Prize recipient Angélique Kidjo shares her new single and video “JOY” with Afrobeats superstar Davido, who recently sold out Madison Square Garden. The single serves as the second collaboration from Kidjo this year following her previously released single “Sunlight To My Soul,” with Diane Warren (“Only Love Can Hurt Like This,” “Rhythm of the Night,” and “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing”) and the Soweto Gospel Choir, signaling a new chapter in her storied career that stretches over four decades.
The collaboration is the second for Kidjo and Davido who first worked together on ‘“NA MONEY” from Davido’s 2023 album, Timeless, and earlier this year performed together at Davido’s sold-out O2 Arena show. The two musicians came together in New York City during the summer to work on "JOY". Their natural resonance and musical bond led to a song that radiates positivity and highlights the significance of resilience - messages are expressed in both Yoruba and English within the track.
Currently performing on the European leg of her world tour, multi-Grammy-Award winner and 2023 Polar Music Prize recipient Angélique Kidjo and Afrobeats superstar Davido reunite to share the music video for their smash single “JOY.” The latest offering sees Davido and Kidjo reuniting with Dammy Twitch, the same director who shot the music video for their first-ever collaboration “NA MONEY,” featured on Davido’s 2023 Timeless album.
The two titans of African music first started working on “JOY” after a chance reunion in New York City this summer and just days ago managed to carve out time from their busy schedules to meet up again in St. Tropez where they shot the song’s official music video with additional footage filmed in Nigeria. Bursting with color and infectious energy, the natural resonance and musical bond between them radiates positivity, while the lyrics - expressed in both Yoruba and English - highlight the significance of resilience. First release last month, “JOY” entered the Nigerian National Airplay charts at #7 and boasts a Top 20 position in South Africa’s Airplay charts. The single serves as the second collaboration from Kidjo this year following her previously released single “Sunlight To My Soul,” with Diane Warren (“Only Love Can Hurt Like This,” “Rhythm of the Night,” and “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing”) and the Soweto Gospel Choir, signaling a new chapter in her storied career that stretches over four decades.
ANGÉLIQUE KIDJO UNVEILS NEW MUSIC VIDEO FOR “BANDO” FEAT. PHARRELL WILLIAMS & QUAVO
Pharrell-Produced Reimagining ofKidjo’sHOPE!! Standout Track Expands Original with Voices of Fire and 50-Member Orchestra
Directed by Paul Hunter (Notorious B.I.G., Mariah Carey, Michael Jackson) and Filmed in Grigny, France
Seeking to spotlight the vitality of the communities that inspired the song, Kidjo, Williams, and Quavo filmed the video for “Bando” with director Paul Hunter in La Grande Borne, a public-housing project in Grigny, in the suburbs of Paris. Even as a historic heat wave swept through the area, residents filled the streets and danced for hours, embodying what Kidjo views as a much-needed counter-narrative to rampant stereotypes. “Most of the time, people only talk about the pain and the struggle of people in the projects, but there’s also pride and joy and celebration,” she says. “When we made the video the whole community came out, and you could feel how proud they were to be seen and recognized. Even in the crazy heat, the kids were so happy and so hopeful. I hope that the song will do them justice, and lift them up even more.”
“The visual world of ‘Bando’ is rooted in culture and community,” says director Paul Hunter. “I was moved by the song and inspired to explore the world it evokes beyond the music itself. The most powerful moments came from observing people simply being together, seeing the younger generation supported by those who came before them, and capturing those natural moments of connection. The goal was to create an experience that felt lived-in and honest, while honoring the culture and people who give the song its meaning.”
“Bando” takes its title from a term for an abandoned house, but the song looks beyond a physical place to the lives and creativity that exist within communities shaped by poverty and inequality. At its core is Kidjo’s conviction that where someone begins should never dictate where they are able to go. “So much of the art that we love comes from people who created something out of nothing,” says Kidjo. “When you have so little, making art becomes a way to have agency and protect your humanity. It proves that you have something of value to share with the world.”