Angélique Kidjo first black African to get Hollywood Walk of Fame star

 

Musical icon Angélique Kidjo has become the first black African performer to be selected for a star on the prestigious Hollywood Walk of Fame.

 Kidjo, who comes from the West African country of Benin and has won five Grammy awards, was among the 35 names announced as part of the Walk of Fame's class of 2026 list.

 During a press conference on Wednesday to announce the list, the 64-year-old was referred to as Africa's "premier diva." Demi Moore, Shaquille O'Neal, Timothée Chalamet, and Miley Cyrus are among the others who will receive a star on the renowned walk of fame in Los Angeles. Angélique Kidjo on being hangry and Africa's 'tsunami' of talent

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 After producing music for more than four decades and releasing 16 albums, Kidjo receives the award. The singer's commanding voice and ability to combine West African styles with funk, jazz, and R&B have won her fans all over the world. Burna Boy, Philip Glass, Sting, and Alicia Keys are just a few of her many collaborators. On the Walk of Fame, which has more than 2,700 stars, Kidjo and Charlize Theron, a white South African actress, are the only people from Africa to have a star. Theron received her star in 2005.

 The date on which Kidjo will see her star unveiled on the Walk of Fame has not yet been announced.

 After being chosen for a star, recipients have two years to plan induction ceremonies. Kidjo spent his childhood in Benin, but he moved to Paris in 1983 because he felt oppressed by the communist government there at the time. "From the moment the communist regime arrived in Benin, I became aware that the freedom we enjoy can be snatched away in a second," she told the BBC in 2023.

 She said she has been driven by curiosity since childhood, adding: "my nickname was 'when, why, how?'.  I want to know everything and where I fit in this world. Kidjo worked as a backing singer in France before striking out as a solo artist in 1990, with the album Parakou.

 She is a Unicef and Oxfam goodwill ambassador, and has her own charity, Batonga, which is dedicated to supporting the education of young girls in Africa.