Biography
Who is Zeynab Habib?
Early life and family background
Oloukèmi Zeynab Abibou was born in Abidjan, Benin, on September 25, 1975. She grew up in a large household as the eighth child among more than 16 siblings. Her father worked as an electronics engineer, while her mother was a trader.
During her school years, she participated in various music competitions. She eventually studied at the General Education College of Allada in 1993. Although she completed her secondary school requirements, she decided to leave formal education to focus on her music.
Starting a music career
Zeynab began her professional path by performing at a karaoke bar located at Alex's Hotel in Cotonou. In 1995, she joined the Super Quartz orchestra after meeting the group during inter-school cultural competitions. Working with this orchestra allowed her to collaborate with several established artists.
She released her debut album, Intori, in 2002. This collection included 14 tracks and earned her a nomination at the Kora Awards. Her second album, From One Place to Another, followed in 2004. This project featured a collaboration with Congolese artist Lokua Kanza and contained 14 tracks. The song Child from this album earned her the Best West African Artist trophy at the Kora Awards in South Africa.
Professional milestones and international work
In 2005, she performed in a music recital that led the Super Quartz orchestra to recruit her as a singer. Through this partnership, she worked with musicians including Awilo Longomba, Fifi Rafiatou, and Jacky Rapon. She later expanded her reach by releasing the album Olukémi in 2011, which featured 16 tracks such as Bébé yiga and Pour son amour.
Zeynab Habib reached a new level of success in April 2016 with the release of the single I no go die. The track reached the top spot on iTunes sales across several African nations and held the number one position on the Hit 30 Africa radio chart for two weeks. Following this success, she completed a European tour covering France, Belgium, Germany, and Switzerland, and performed as an opening act for Maitre Gims in Ouagadougou. Shortly after, she received a trophy at the Afrimma Music Awards in Lagos.
Awards and humanitarian contributions
Beyond her musical achievements, she has served as a National Goodwill Ambassador for UNICEF since 2007. Her commitment to this role continued as of October 2015. She continues to garner industry attention, including nominations at the 2020 Afrimma Awards for the best female artist in West Africa and for the video of the year for her song Waa.
Birthday and age
Zeynab Habib was born on September 25, 1975, which makes Zeynab 51 years old today. That birthday falls under the Libra sign. Zeynab shares the date with 79 other famous people.
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