Born in Benin, West Africa, Angelique Kidjo is a Grammy award-winning singer and songwriter deemed "Africa's premier diva" by Time Magazine. Kidjo's internationally acclaimed repertoire includes collaborations with various recording artists such as Carlos Santana, Peter Gabriel, Alicia Keys, Josh Groban, Branford Marsalis, Joss Stone, and many more. Known for her dynamic and uplifting music, she has translated her distinctive work in the arts to that of philanthropy; by promoting education for girls in Africa through her foundation, Batonga and as a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador Kidjo has spread her rhythmic Afro-fusion to the far reaches of the globe, cross-pollinating the West African traditions of her childhood in Benin with elements of R&B, jazz, and funk, as well as influences from Europe and Latin America. Commanding the stage with her fun-loving personality and electrifying charisma, this singer crosses musical boundaries and in doing so, seeks to unite different world cultures through her music. Kidjo travels the world to inspire and empower, and through her work with UNICEF she has delivered countless speeches on the issues children and women face in her native land and elsewhere. On her latest album, "Spirit Rising," Kidjo revisits the music that was instrumental in her artistic formation in Benin, whose communist dictatorship she fled in the early 1980s. "Spirit Rising" pays tribute to her homeland, spreading the word about the richness and beauty of her culture as she knew it growing up in Benin.
