Tuesday, November 06, 2007
MY NIGERIAN MISTRESS
Or so I wish. She was born in Ibadan, Ọyọ State, Nigeria. Her parents, Bisi Adu, a Nigerian lecturer in economics of Yoruba background, and Anne Hayes, an English nurse, met in London and moved to west Africa. She was a voracious reader while growing up and favored listening to the music of soul artists like Curtis Mayfield, Donny Hathaway and Marvin Gaye. When her parents' marriage went afoul, the mother brought her and her brother back to England.
She studied fashion design at St. Martin's College in London and upon graduating, she established a small company with a friend making men's clothes. She also cultivated a great interest in dance and as a print model, but it was in the field of music where she was to attain great fame and fortune. Smooth Operator became her first US hit.
I finally saw her perform live at Radio City Music Hall one summer. Her sultry voice, sensuous dance moves and beguiling stage presence transported me to the realm of angels that evening.
Sade, may she live forever.
posted by Señor Enrique at 7:47 AM
19 Comments:
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said... I really like your posts especially about these "cool" and extremely talented artists---Sade and Sakamoto! Thank you! My husband was once stationed in Nigeria (before we met) and would regale me with his adventures there. The blacks we briefly would chat with in airports in Germany find Nigeria the last place they would go. But my husband tells me that he really met some beautiful souls there. As to the general situation, it's somewhat like a wild west or as he termed like a "Hotel Rwanda" movie. Omigod!
Going back to Sade---women with those astonishing facial features gets me getting all soooo inggit :-)----typical high forehead, slanted eyes and full pouting lips. And a body with voice that keeps in tune with how the Persian poets write about their lady loves. For the inggitera in me I would say she would have her bad hair days too! :-)-
said...
I love Sade's sultry voice too. She's really good and I would never get bored listening to her songs.
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ScroochChronicles said... I love Sade! Did she die or something?
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said...
Know what, Eric - with the way you arrange the things that you photograph, plus the beautiful blending of your lighting effects - you can make a fortune in interior design/decoration. :)
I love that contrast of the green background. I also once dreamed to be an interior designer, for your information. There was a time when my kids felt like going home to a different house every time they came from school. But now I'm lazy na. Nagsawa na rin. hehe.-
Aura said...
Hi SE
Did´nt know Sade is of Nigerian origin.Thanks for your infos!
All the while I thought she must be Ethiopian or Sudanese bcoz of her beauty( no offense to Nigerians)Love her voice and sensuality!
I was in Dubai when i first heard her music in ´85-´86. i would drive around the Emirates listening to her music on almost full volume in those days!! hahaha!!!
Now, i hate to hear loud music in a car passing by. I can just imagine the Arabs critisizing me in those days whenever i pass them by.-
said...
I really enjoy reading your entries. This is my first time to post and I am really honored to be one of your followers. I salute you for sharing your stories about our culture and for making it a window for our foreign friends here and abroad.
Looking forward to your future articles.-
gmirage said...
A living legend! And as one of the comments read: She looks good for her age! Africans(though Sade is regarded more as English) are one of the most beautiful people! Kze even if they have black skin, kita mo na ang ganda, pano na kung pumuti pa? And they are really friendly...they're so easy to talk to, lagi ding nakasmile... =)
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Señor Enrique said...
The URLs you share with me, Romy, are now making me wish for a speedier Internet access ... hehehe. Very interesting finds you have, indeed. Thanks much for sharing!
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Señor Enrique said...
They sure are, G. Mirage. I remember when Seventh Avenue's premier couture runway shows wouldn't be complete without Iman as one of its leading models. Shortly after Iman retired and married David Bowie, another model from Africa suddenly took the fashion world by storm.
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Señor Enrique said...
And I am honored by your visits, El Cineasta.
I remain an optimist that our city will experience continued renaissance, providing each and everyone of us with a more colorful and vibrant backdrop for our personal stories to share with our loved ones and friends both here and abroad :)
Mabuhay at maraming salamat!-
Señor Enrique said...
And as you may already know, Aura, Sade is not that tall a figure, but she does carry herself with such graceful movements.
Her music is truly unique; she was blessed with an incredibly talented band. In her case, it did seem as if the entire universe conspired to help her lighten the world with great music.
And I can understand why you pumped that volume while driving around Dubai. To be young and carefree -- and with Sade's music as soundtrack. :)-
Señor Enrique said...
My sister Inday actually studied Interior Design at UST, but she never pursued it as a profession.
While attending night school, I worked for four years at W&J Sloane, New York City's premier furniture store. I was assigned at the Lamp Department and learned so much about various interior lights and lighting techniques in those years I spent there. I guess, that was where I learned to appreciate fine interior design as well, which you'd never learn at schools. Hmmmm... I should blog about it ... hehehe!
Many thanks, Rhoda!-
Señor Enrique said...
She's very much alive and well, Scrooch! The thing is, everytime I take still life pictures, afterwards, while looking at them, an idea will spring up for accompanying blog entries to go along with them.
The featured picture in this post immediately made me think of Sade so, that was what the resulting blog article became :)-
Señor Enrique said...
Although she hasn't released any new material, Kyels, like you, I'd sometimes listen to her previous recordings with as much relish as when I first heard of them :)
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Señor Enrique said...
Hahaha! And I have always been in awe of their strong white teeth. And know what, Bernadette? They never get any wrinkles no matter how old they get!
I met and became friends with two guys from Nigeria when I forayed into the IT field in New York. Very much like Pinoys, they're highly educated and excelled in their profession. One of them ended up teaching at a local college. They also love to laugh even at the corniest jokes.-
said...
I love Sade's music too. Too bad she's stopped producing records. One of her all time hits, SMOOTH OPERATOR was a well known LA drug lord's funeral song :) Imagine walking to the interment area with the bouncy, jazzy tune in the background - slick !!
Her songs obviously appealed to a broad cross-section of society :)-
Señor Enrique said...
A jazzy tune by Sade may have been more appropriate for a funeral, BW, than one of those hip hop rap music which is fast becoming a popular trend played at funerals for the young.
Actually, Smooth Operator was the least of my favorites, for I find it too commercial out of her entire impressive catalog.-
Unknown said...
Sade is one classy performer, she's also beautiful. Oh, and I love the photos in your blogs.
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Señor Enrique said...
Yes, I agree wholeheartedly with what you said about Sade, Luna -- she is really one of a kind!
Many thanks for your kind words and thank you for visiting :)
