Chidinma Ekile (born 2 May 1991), popularly known by her stage name Chidinma, is a Nigerian singer-songwriter, recording artist and stage performer. In 2010, she rose to stardom after winning the third season of MTN Project Fame West Africa. Following
the release of the music video for her "Emi Ni Baller" single, she
became the first female musician to peak at number 1 on the MTV Base Official Naija Top 10 chart. In 2011, she released her first solo single "Jankoliko" featuring Sound Sultan. Chidinma, her self-titled debut studio album, was released through the music platform Spinlet. It was supported by the singles "Jankoliko", "Carry You Go", "Kedike" and "Run Dia Mouth". The album features guest appearances from Sound Sultan, Tha Suspect, Olamide and Muna. In 2012, Chidinma won the Best Female West African Act category at the 2012 Kora Awards; she performed "Kedike" at the ceremony.
Early life, educational pursuits, and public image
Chidinma
Ekile, the sixth of seven children, was born in Ketu, Lagos State. Both
of her parents are from Imo State. She worked as a business promoter in
Lagos prior to auditioning for the third season of MTN's Project Fame West Africa.
Chidinma started singing at the age of 6, and grew up with a
disciplinarian father. When she was 10 years old, she joined her
church's choir. She attended primary and secondary school in Ketu prior
to relocating to Ikorodu with her family. Chidinma is currently studying
Sociology at the University of Lagos.
She initially wanted to study Mass Communication. Chidinma initially
declined her admission into the University of Lagos due to her
advancement in the aforesaid competition. In an interview with YNaija,
Chidinma said that she has always taken school seriously and her
decision to enroll at Unilag was inevitable. She also said that music
hasn't always been on her agenda, and that she decided to give it a try
after winning the MTN Project Fame competition. After dying her hair red
and getting a mohawk, people started perceiving her as a good girl gone
bad. In an interview posted on the Daily Independent website, Chidinma said she is still the same. She also said she's evolving and growing as a musician.
Music career
Project Fame
Prior to auditioning for the third edition of Project Fame West Africa,
she dreamt of being part of the reality TV show that was instituted in
2008. With the help and support from her close knit friend, Chidinma
left her home in Ikorodu and went to the Ultima Studios, the venue for
the show's 2010 Lagos auditions. She was among the 8,000 or so
contestants who went to showcase their talents that year. Subsequently,
Chidinma advanced to the Fame Academy round alongside 17 other
contestants. For 10 weeks, Chidinma and the other contestants were
coached by musical professionals: voice coaches, inspirational speakers,
established musicians, and music business service providers. Moreover,
contestants were taught choreography and several rehearsal drills. On 26
September 2010, Chidinma became the apparent winner of the competition.
She won several prizes, including N2.5 million, a 2011 Toyota RAV4, and an album production deal. In May 2013, Chidinma signed an endorsement deal with MTN Nigeria.
2011–2012:Chidinma
Chidinma started working on her debut studio album, Chidinma, after releasing a collaborative project with the other finalists of MTN Project Fame West Africa Season
3. The album was scheduled for release in the fourth quarter of 2011.
Chidinma spoke briefly on her album and said that she put a whole lot of
energy into the album. Chidinma worked with different producers for her
first studio project, including Cobhams Asuquo,
Tee Y Mix, WazBeat and Oscar Heman Ackah. On 22 February 2011, she
released the singles "Jankoliko", featuring Sound Sultan, and "Carry You
Go". Both songs were written and produced by Oscar Heman Ackah. In an
interview posted on the Weekly Trust website, Chidinma said she's
happy about the positive response she received after releasing the
song, and is working hard to improve her craft. The music video for
"Jankoliko", directed by Clarence Peters,
was released on 4 June 2011; it ran for 3 minutes and 33 seconds. On 11
October 2011, Chidinma released "Kedike" as the album's third single.
The song translates to "Heartbeat" and was produced by Cobhams Asuquo.
The music video for "Kedike" was released on 24 January 2012; it was
directed by Clarence Peters. Dammy Krane, a recording artist signed to Tuface's Hypertek Digital, played Chidinma's love interest in the music video. In an interview with Entertainment Rave,
Chidinma said that "Kedike" is a song that depicts love. She and her
producers invented the word "Kedike". On 11 October 2011, she also
released the album's fourth single "Run Dia Mouth".
2013–present:Upcoming album
Chidinma
began recording her upcoming album in the fourth quarter of 2012. On 14
September 2012, she released the album's lead single "Emi Ni Baller"
featuring her fellow labelmates Tha Suspect and Illbliss. The song was produced by Legendury Beatz. It peaked at number 7 on Vanguard's
"Top 10 songs that made 2013" list. On 22 February 2013, Chidinma and
her record label released the remix of "Emi Ni Baller" featuring Wizkid.
The song was also produced by Legendury Beatz. On 12 June 2013, CAPital
Dreams Pictures released the music video for "Emi Ni Baller". It was
shot and directed in the U.K by Clarence Peters. On 10 June 2013, Chidinma released "Bless My Hustle" (featuring Phyno),
"Kite" and "Jolly", three singles off the upcoming album. "Bless My
Hustle" was produced by Tha Suspect, and "Kite" was produced by Del B.
"Jolly" was produced by Wizboy.
On 14 September 2013, Chidinma released "Oh Baby", and on 29 January 2014, she released "Oh Baby (You & I)" featuring Flavour N'abania.
Both songs were produced by Young D. On 2 May 2014, the same day as her
birthday, Chidinma released the music video for "Oh Baby (You & I)"
which was directed by Clarence Peters. The video stars Ngozi Nwosu and OC Ukeje.
Notable performances
Chidinma performed with Dr SID at
the MTN Power of 10 Concerts, a ten-city tour that celebrated MTN
Nigeria's ten-year anniversary; the tour kicked off in Makurdi on 9
September 2011. Chidinma was one of the supporting acts on the 2013
Hennessy Artistry Club Tour headlined by D'banj. On 3 November 2013, she performed at the Guinness World of More Concert alongside P-Square, D'banj, Wizkid, Ice Prince, Burna Boy, Olamide, Phyno, Waje, Dav
Accomplishments and musical influences
Chidinma won the "Best Female West African Act" category at 2012 Kora Awards. Her award plaque was presented to her by Didier Drogba. She toppled Omawumi and
five others for the honour. After winning the award, Chidinma said: "It
was a huge honour to me. I’m grateful to God, my fans and people, who
have been part of my success story. Winning KORA is a big achievement
for me and I know it is the beginning of better things to
come." Chidinma has cited Michael Jackson, Bob Marley, Alicia Keys, Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey, Fela Kuti, Omawumi, Onyeka Onwenu, Lagbaja and Darey Art Alade as her biggest musical influences.
Personal life
Sex tape accusation
In November 2013, a viral sex tape of Chidinma's look-alike surfaced on the internet. Many people were convinced that Chidinma was the one in the sex tape. Speaking to Sunday Beats,
Chidinma debunked the accusation. She said she felt bad when she
initially heard the story. In an extensive interview with Nonye
Ben-Nwankwo, Chidinma elaborated on the sex tape scandal. She said that
while her fan base grew from the incident, she felt quite devastated.
She also thanked her core fans for their support through the scandal
Awards and nominations
| Year | Event | Prize | Recipient | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | City People Entertainment Awards | Musician of the Year (Female) | Herself | Nominated | [41] |
| Best Collabo of the Year | "Oh! Baby (You & I)" (featuring Flavour N'abania) | Nominated | |||
| 2014 Nigeria Entertainment Awards | Best Pop/R&B Artist of the Year | Herself | Nominated | [42] | |
| Female Artist of the Year | Nominated | ||||
| Best Music Video of the Year (Artist & Director) | "Oh! Baby (You & I)" (featuring Flavour N'abania) | Nominated | |||
| Best Collaboration | Nominated | ||||
| African Muzik Magazine Awards | Best Female West Africa | Herself | Nominated | [43] | |
| MTV Africa Music Awards 2014 | Best Female | Nominated | [44] | ||
| 2013 | The Headies | Best Collabo | "Emi Ni Baller" (featuring Tha Suspect and IllBliss) | Nominated | [45] |
| Nigeria Music Video Awards (NMVA) | Video of the Year | Nominated | [46] | ||
| Best Pop Extra Video | Won | ||||
| Best Afro Hip Hop Video | "I Am Sorry" (IllBliss featuring Chidinma) | Nominated | |||
| Channel O Music Video Awards | Most Gifted African West | "Emi Ni Baller" (featuring Tha Suspect and IllBliss) | Nominated | [47] | |
| Nigeria Entertainment Awards | Best Collabo | Nominated | [48] | ||
| City People Entertainment Awards | Musician of the Year (Female) | Herself | Nominated | [49] | |
| 2012 | The Headies | Best Vocal Performance (Female) | "Kedike" | Nominated | [50] |
| Nigeria Music Video Awards (NMVA) | Best Afro Pop | Nominated | [51] | ||
| Best Indigenous Concept | Nominated | ||||
| Nigeria Entertainment Awards | Best New Act of the Year | Herself | Nominated | [52] | |
| Best Pop/R&B Artist of the Year | Nominated | ||||
| Kora Awards | Best Female West African Act | "Kedike" | Won |
Discography
Studio albums
| Title | Cover | Album details | Notes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chidinma |  |
|
| |||
Singles
| Year | Title | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | "I Am A Winner" (with MTN Project Fame All Stars) | N/A |
| "Jankoliko" (featuring Sound Sultan) | Chidinma | |
| "Carry You Go" | ||
| "Kedike" | ||
| "Run Dia Mouth" | ||
| 2012 | "Emi Ni Baller" (featuring Tha Suspect and iLLBliss) | TBA |
| 2013 | "Emi Ni Baller (Remix)" (featuring WizKid) | |
| "Bless My Hustle" (featuring Phyno) | ||
| "Kite" | ||
| "Jolly" | ||
| "Oh Baby" | ||
| "Sweet Like Shuga" (with Flavour, KCee, Sound Sultan, and Professor) | N/A | |
| "CAPITAL Krismas" (with Tha Suspect, iLLBliss, Tesh Carter, and Clarence Peters) | Non-album single | |
| 2014 | "Oh Baby (You & I)" (featuring Flavour) | TBA |
| "Kuli Kache" | ||
| "Martha"[ | ||
| Year | Title | Album |
| 2012 | "In The Air" (Tesh Carter featuring Chidinma) | TBA |
| 2013 | "One Kain Love" (Mystro featuring Chidinma) | |
| "Oga DJ" (Mr 2kay featuring Chidinma) | ||
| "Only Human" (Silvastone featuring Chidinma) | ||
| "Suddenly" (Monica Ogah featuring Chidinma) | Sometime in August | |
| "Powerful" (iLLBliss featuring Chidinma) | TBA | |
| "I Am Sorry" (iLLBliss featuring Chidinma) | Oga Boss | |
| "Ije Love" (Dubie featuring Chidinma) | DUBIE | |
| "Doxology" (Mike Aremu featuring Chidinma) | Coat of Many Colours | |
| 2014 | "ODUNAYO" (Creddy-F featuring Chidinma and Phyno) | TBA |
| "Sweet Potato" (Praiz featuring Chidinma) | Rich and Famous | |
| "Our Voices" (DaSuki featuring Chidinma) | TBA | |
| 2015 | ''All I Want Is You'' (Banky W featuring Chidinma) | TBA |
| Year | Title | Director(s) |
| 2011 | "I Am A Winner" (with MTN Project Fame All Stars) | Bayo Alawiye |
| "Jankoliko" (featuring Sound Sultan) | Clarence Peters | |
| 2012 | "Kedike" | |
| "In The Air" (Tesh Carter featuring Chidinma) | ||
| 2013 | "Only Human" (Silvastone featuring Chidinma) | |
| "Emi Ni Baller" (featuring Tha Suspect and iLLBliss) | ||
| "One Kain Love" (Mystro featuring Chidinma) | ||
| "I Am Sorry" (iLLBliss featuring Chidinma) | ||
| "Sweet Like Shuga" (with Flavour, KCee, Sound Sultan, and Professor) | ||
| "Oh Baby (You & I)" (featuring Flavour) | ||
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