Imani biography personal life. Biography IMANY. Imany's musical career
Stage name Nadia ... Read all
Many of us have a period in life when we finally get tired of work. More and more often you give vent to doubts and thoughts about your own destiny do not allow you to sleep peacefully at night. So, after 7 years of work on the catwalks of New York, model Nadia Mlajao decides to return from the United States to her homeland in France and devote her future life to a musical career.
Nadia's stage name Imany is consonant with the word "imani" - in Swahili, its meaning is "faith". With faith in her own strength, the singer begins to work on jazz and soul compositions, combining French charm with American flair into a unique style that later found its audience in Russia. Nadya considers Billie Holiday and Nina Simones to be her teachers - the influence of jazz on creativity is obvious.
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In fact, the real story of the pseudonym is related to modeling work. In the agency where the girl worked, several models turned out to be her namesakes at once. In response to the management's decision to give the future singer the name "Nadia No. 4", Imany takes on a pseudonym from the film in which Eddie Murphy played "A Trip to America" - one of the characters in the picture was Princess Imani. Later, Nadia admitted that she dreamed of giving this name to her daughter, but due to circumstances, she had to use the romantic pseudonym herself.
In 2011 Imany releases his first album "The Shape Of A Broken Heart" - the release was certified platinum in France and Greece plus triple platinum status in Poland. In the course of working on the album, 30 tracks were written - after careful selection, it was decided to leave only 12. Later in an interview, Nadia will tell that her music was loved in countries where people tend to have some melancholy, this is how they find an answer to their feelings in the singer's work.
Imany developed a special connection with Russia, where the song “You Will Never Know” became extremely popular. The singer has already visited Moscow twice and sincerely fell in love with walking around Red Square.
Imany
Imany began her career as a model, but she managed to prove that she is not only a “cover girl”. Her velvety voice captivated thousands of fans, and the singles were on the first lines of the world charts.Childhood of the future star
The real name of the singer is Nadia Mlajao. She was born on April 5, 1979 in a town called Martigues, located in the southeast of France in the Provence region. Previously, her family lived in the Comoros, but just before the birth of the girl, her parents decided to move to another country. They felt that in France they would be able to provide their daughter with a better future than in their homeland.Little Nadia has always been very mobile and energetic, so her father and mother sent her daughter to play sports professionally. The girl showed good results in athletics, ran well, and a little later took up high jumps. When Nadia was 10 years old, she became a student of a special military school. There, the baby had to get used to strict discipline and serious sports loads. Despite the fact that this was not the happiest period in her life, it was in such an educational institution that she discovered a new talent in herself - the girl began to sing. Her first performances were in the school choir. Even then, the teachers noted the unusual and strong voice of the young singer. Nadia herself, listening to the songs of Billie Holiday and Tina Turner in the evenings, began to dream of leaving for New York and becoming a famous artist.
Model business
Meanwhile, after graduating from school, Nadia had to forget about singing for a while. She accidentally caught the eye of an agent looking for models. The exotic appearance of the girl, her figure and natural grace did not leave him indifferent. He invited her to try herself in the modeling business. It is unlikely that anyone could refuse such a chance. Nadia thought so too, becoming a model of the world-famous Ford Models agency.
The work opened up new perspectives for the girl. Soon she was offered a contract in the United States, where she moved. She lived in this country for about seven years. Nadia took part in many fashion shows and graced the covers of famous magazines. But the modeling career does not last very long, so the girl decided to return to her native France and start practicing vocals.
Imany's musical career
Once in Paris, the first thing Nadia comes up with is a stage name. After several options, she settled on the name Imany, which means "faith" in Swahili. Next, the girl decides to practice singing. She performs in small Parisian clubs and cafes, performing both well-known compositions and tracks of her own composition. And then the singer started recording her first album. By this point, she had already written so many songs that they were enough for a whole disc.
The Shape of a Broken Heart album appeared on store shelves in 2011 and made a splash. Many critics noted the talent of the aspiring soul singer, appreciating her undeniable charm and sensuality. Imany has acquired a large army of fans. Her album has received various awards. In Greece and France, he was awarded platinum status. In Poland, meanwhile, the disc was certified triple platinum.
The most popular track of all was the song You Will Never Know. It was released in several arrangements and began to play frequently on radio stations. After some time, the track took a leading place in the world music charts. He sounded in many clubs, which only added to the fame of the performer. And until now, the song is kept in many charts, although several years have passed since its release. The same fate befell the composition The Good The Bad & The Crazy. In fact, these two tracks have become a kind of “calling card” of Imany and allowed reaching the widest audience, and not just soul style fans.
At the same time, Imany continues to perform songs in French. She considers him family and gives him preference. The singer even chose to make the official website in this language. 
Imany's personal life
Very little is known about the personal life of the performer. She eschews the media, arguing that people should judge her work, not her novels. In addition, there is simply not enough time for a romantic relationship with Imany now. Her schedule is literally scheduled to the minute. She lives in two countries, flying alternately to America and France. In parallel, the singer travels around the world and gives concerts in different parts of the world.According to the singer, she never aspired to fame. It's just that at some point Imany realized that music was the most important thing for her. Singing is what she would like to devote her whole life to. Therefore, she is not going to stop there. The singer plans to have even more great songs, albums and concert tours.
Her real name is Nadia and her stage name is Imany, which means "faith" in Swahili. She is 37 and is the new European superstar. Looking at Imany, it's hard to understand how she managed to go unnoticed for so many years, because her popularity came only in 2011, and in Russia they began to recognize her a couple of years ago. A low, slightly hoarse voice, coffee-colored skin and a look that burns through the interlocutor - Mademoiselle sings the blues.
For some time now the singer Imany has been a frequent guest in Russia. A week ago, she performed at the Europa Plus music festival, held in Moscow, and at the end of the year, on December 4, she will give a solo concert in the capital. The singer spoke about the new album, modeling past and attitude towards Russian fans in an interview with HELLO.RU.
Before starting your musical career, you played sports and worked in the modeling business. How did you come to music?
Sports - high jumps - I have been doing for a very long time, in adolescence. When I grew up, I started working as a model, this is my first job. However, the work of the model cannot last long: when you turn 25, no one needs you if you have not achieved global success. I had to leave this business and look for something else. I dreamed of becoming a singer. By that time, I, a native of France, had already lived in the United States for about seven years, but after the events of September 11, I left New York. After that tragedy, the market collapsed, many girls were left without work, and I was one of them. Something had to be done, many began to work in restaurants to pay for housing. At first I worked as a waitress, hostess - it was very difficult. Then many actors, directors and musicians worked as waiters... As a result, I decided to return to Europe.
Soul and blues - the directions in which you work - are not super popular these days. Probably, they can be attributed to more intellectual, complex directions in music than many other styles. Do you think there is a future for these genres?
I don't think that the blues is a difficult direction, many blues compositions are built on almost two chords, but it seems to me that the blues is deeper than it is commonly thought. The modern music industry has chosen the formal way of producing music for itself - in the sense that big companies want to make music, but not build a culture. For example, 50 artists around the world perform their songs, but in fact it's the same song, so it's not surprising that all these tracks sound similar. Coming up with blues and soul music is not difficult, but it goes much deeper into the soul than pop music. Soul and blues make people think, which is probably why they have so little space in the music industry.
This is not the first time you have come to Russia. How do you like the Russian audience?
Russians are very interesting. I noticed that on the street they are all very constrained, especially men. Nobody makes noise, nobody smiles. No smiles, you understand? But when the Russians come to the concert, you can see a completely different picture from the stage: they laugh, shout, have fun, become reckless, crazy, even a little dangerous, in general, they have fun with all their might. It's such a contrast, but I like it.
Where did you manage to visit while in Moscow?
I went to a very good restaurant, I forgot the name, it is located on the river bank. The weather was great! Usually, of course, I go to Red Square, but I'm sure there are a lot of interesting things in Moscow.
Now many artists different reasons turn away from Russia. But you have not changed your attitude, you continue to visit us. Why?
I have my own vision of the political situation in the world, but, you see, it is not Vladimir Putin who buys my albums.
Well, maybe he buys - who knows ...
May be (Laughs.) I mean, I didn't come here to speak exclusively to Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin. I come to Russia to sing for a Russian audience - regardless of the political situation in the world. I make music for people, and if people love me and invite me to their country, I go.
Imany (Imani), whose real name Nadia Mladjao, was born in 1979 in the Comoros in the port city of Mortigues, northwest of Marseille. As a teenager, she was quite successful in athletics, high jumping. Later, a modeling agency noticed her, so the future singer began working at Ford Models Europe. Some time later, she went to the United States, and six years later she returned to France, where she began her career as a singer.
2008 was a turning point for Imany. She had just returned from modeling in New York, but she was so tired of this sometimes dirty business that she decided to succeed in what she had a soul for. But, it must be added that the abilities were present, namely her amazing voice. In the works of the singer, which in general are of a blues character with a claim to neo-soul and rhythm and blues, African folk motifs are also felt.
After the release of her debut album The Shape of a Broken Heart in 2011, critics immediately began to talk about the uniqueness of her singing talent. But, among other things, in her songs the singer talks about emotions, not only love, but also anger, hope, hidden desires, and she puts a part of herself into each of the motives. Now Imany is rapidly winning the hearts of people around the world.
imany was born in 1979 in Martigue, in a family from the Comoros.
In her youth, she was an athlete, engaged in high jumps. Nadia became a model for the Ford Models Europe modeling agency. Lived in the USA for 7 years. It is during her stay in New York that she catches the "music virus". She starts taking vocal lessons and writing lyrics. Tired of "being a hanger", she quits her modeling career and, after fruitless meetings with American producers, returns to France.
Since 2008, Nadia has been performing on Parisian stages, and this is how the singer's career begins. On the occasion of a visit to Santier de Al, she met Malik Ndiaye, who was already the producer of Ayo (Ayọ) and Grace (Grace). Nadia's parents were at first "not very happy" with their daughter's professional choice, but in the end they were supportive.
Choosing a pseudonym imany- "faith" or "hope in the Comoros" - she writes songs in English.
First album imany, "Shape of a Broken Heart", named after a painting drawn by the singer herself with her eyes closed, consisted of 12 English-language songs.
imany became the producer of the soundtrack for the 2014 Audrey Dana film "Sous les jupes des filles" and released her second album of the same name on May 26, 2014.
