Seyi Shay

About Seyi Shay

If you love throwback RnB songs, your favourite Nigerian Afropop singer Seyi Shay has a hand in it. The British-born Nigerian artist entertains you with ‘You Will See’ a famous song by Melanie C off her third album ‘Beautiful Intentions’. Shay wrote the song in 2005 when she was only 20 years old. That’s how talented of a singer she is.

She was born on 21 December 1985 and raised by Nigerian parents in Tottenham, London. Her father hails from Ife, while her mother was from the northern part of Nigeria. The best part of her childhood is her mother teaching her the dictates of Christianity. As early as two years old, she grew an inner love for Nigeria since she visited often and eventually attended her high school in Lagos-based Command High School. She returned to London to continue with her undergraduate degree at the University of East London.

The ‘Right’ now hitmaker graduated with a Bachelor of Arts (Honors) degree in Music Business Management. Her family’s musical background compounded her decision to pursue a course in the lines of music. One of the memories the multi-award-winning artist has of her late mother is her chorister obligations in church. At age 6, Shay was an ardent choir member and continued all through her high school days. The highlight of it all is appearing on stage with the London Community Gospel Choir as they toured the world, stopping in Japan for 13 shows.

Her mother realized how deep she was in music and for a moment, she dissuaded her from pursuing it as a career. The singer opened up to Lanre Odukoya of Thisday during an interview that her mother persuaded her to study medicine or law. With time, she accepted that her daughter had a rare gift and she changed her opinion. Just before her death, she blessed her to take it away in music.

Her career took off after landing her first recording deal with Sir George Martin's label, No Apologies. It was around this time that she wrote the lyrics of Melanie C’s ‘You Will See’. In 2006, Seyi Shay joined a UK-based female band, Boadicea. After two years of being together, the band crumbled. That’s when she auditioned for From Above, a UK singing competition. So good was her performance at the auditions that she instantly became the lead vocalist for From Above band.

The all-girl band signed a recording deal with Mathew Knowles and flew to Houston, Texas to hone their musical skills. Memorably, the band performed as backup singers during Beyoncé’s I Am... World Tour in the UK. The band got its own MTV reality program called Breaking From Above, televised in over 166 countries. This stoked some actress spirit in Seyi Shay who now doubles up as a celebrated thespian. One of her best moments with the band was when they presented Bruno Mars with the award for Best New Act at the 2011 MTV Europe Music Awards.

Sadly, they split but she remained with Knowles for a while before bagging a deal with Fly Time Music back in Nigeria. She stunned with her musical prowess across genres, a craft she mastered in half a decade as a lead vocalist of a band. Her dynamism in the industry booked her collaborations with big artists such as:

1. Justin Timberlake
2. Michelle Williams
3. Brian Michael Cox
4. H-Money
5. Rob Knoxx
6. Chip
7. Bilal
8. Darey
9. Camero Wallace

Back home Wizkid and Patoranking tops the list of new musical powerhouses he has worked with.

Popular Songs by Seyi Shay

1. Right Now
2. Murda
3. Pempe
4. Yolo Yolo
5. Crazy
6. Gimme Love
7. Big Girl
8. Your Matter
9. All I Ever Wanted
10. Weekend Vibes

Seyi Shay EPs & Albums

1. Seyi or Shay
2. Big Girl
3. Electric Package

Mdundo.com gives you an online platform to listen to and download all mp3 you want from Seyi Shay.