t:Oyenike t:Laoye-Oturu, professionally known as Nikki Laoye, is a
Nigerian recording artist, singer, songwriter and dancer, renowned for
her eclectic musical expressions and captivating stage performances. As a
recording artist, Laoye’s music has earned her several awards including
The Headies Award in 2013 for Best Female Vocal Performance and the All African Music Awards (t:AFRIMA) in 2014 for Best Female Artiste in African Inspirational Music.
Her passion for humanitarian activities attracted the attention of
the Nigerian National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally
Displaced Persons (NCFRMI), who unveiled her as the celebrity ‘Voice of
Refugees’ in Southwest Nigeria in 2013.
Her musical style is an urban contemporary sound with the fusion of
alternative rock, R&B, hip hop, pop, soul, funk, jazz and Gospel.
Born in Lagos, Nigeria, Laoye hails from the musical lineage of the
talking drum legend – Late Oba Adetoyese Laoye (from Ede, Osun
State-Nigeria), The singer, fondly called, the small one with the big
voice, rose to fame in 2006 with the hit single, “Never Felt This Way
Before” from her debut studio album, Angel 4 Life (2008), which
also featured other notable singles, including the Hip-Hop collaboration
with Rooftop Mcs and her brother, Rap2Sai – “Taka Sufe”; the love
ballad “Someone to Love” with R&B crooner Jeremiah Gyangamongst
others.
The release of the single “Never Felt This Way Before” brought a
fresh urban Christian contemporary sound to the Nigerian music industry.
This seven-time award nominated song, (2009 Hip Hop World Awards- Best
Vocal Performance (Female) and HipHop World Revelation (Best New
Artist); Kora Awards-Best Spiritual Artist and Best Arrangement; 2009
City People t:Entertainment Awards-Musician of the Year (Female); the 2009
Nigerian Entertainment Awards in the US -t:Gospel Artist of the
Year & 2009 SoundCity Music Video Awards-Best Female Video),
received major accolades and gave Laoye the rating as the 3rd Best
Performance at the 2009 HipHop World Awards in Nigeria (Darey Art Alade
and Tuface coming 1st and 2nd respectively, out of the 10 performances
at the awards).
Laoye was the only female contender alongside top male Nigerian
Artists – M.I, Banky W. and Naeto C for the t:HipHop World Revelation
(Best New Artist) category of the 2009 HipHop World Awards.
In 2009, Laoye performed alongside Kirk Franklin, CeCe Winans, Donnie
McClurkin to an audience of 500,000 at The Experience Concert in Lagos.
Laoye’s music has gained critical acclaim beyond Africa, as she was
one of the first three Nigerian artists ever to be interviewed and
recognized on American entertainment channel, BET in 2009 and she was
one of the preliminary judges for BET’s Sunday BestAuditions which held
in Lagos, Nigeria in December 2009. In 2011, Laoye’s life and career
were showcased in a special feature segment on BET, tagged “BET
Spotlight – Nikki Laoye”.
In 2013, the singer made a comeback into the music scene after being on a hiatus following the loss of her father in 2011.
Laoye was commissioned to record her own version of the Nigerian
National Anthem for Nigerian TV Producer, Mo Abudu’s Ebony Life
Television in June 2013. The video is renowned as the first official
music video for the Nigerian Anthem. Since its release in June 2013,
Laoye has been invited to perform the anthem for the Presidency in Aso
Rock, Abuja and at other official functions. As at 2013, she released
the singles “No Be Beans” with Yoruba Hip Hop artist Base One; the dance
single “1-2-3”; and the Rotimi Keys produced ballad “Only You”, a song
dedicated to the memory of her late father, for which she won an award
for the Best Vocal Performance (Female) at the 2013 Headies Awards in
Lagos, Nigeria.
Nikki Laoye Net worth is $700,000 (2017)
