Nadia Nakai is a Zimbabwe-born South African rapper, songwriter, and television personality. Nakai is the first female rapper to win the prestigious competition and has won the hip hop competition show Mixtape 101. She rose to fame with the release of the popular song Naaa Mea in 2017. Nadia also rose to fame with her appearance on Netflix reality show Young, Famous & African.
Early life
Nadia was born in South Africa in 1990 to an African family. Nadia, who was born of mixed race, revealed that her father is South African and her mother is Zimbabwean. Nakai attended Fourways High School in Johannesburg for a year before completing her education in Kenya. After graduating from high school in Fourways, South Africa, she attended Monash University to do a double major in Media Studies and Marketing.
Nadia eventually moved to Kenya to complete her education, where she met rapper Nazizi, who greatly influenced her music. Her hit song “Money Back” was written during her final faculty days in Kenya. It was then that she met a rapper named Naziz, who was a huge inspiration to her.
Nadia Nakai career
Nakai made her first television appearance on the e.tv hip hop show Shiz Niz, where she became the first girl to win the Mixtape 101 competition. She rose to fame in September 2013 with the release of her breakthrough single Like Me. The next year, she appeared on the remix of the Riky Rick song Amantombazane along with other South African artists.
In June 2015, Nakai released her third single, “Saka Wena” with rapper Ice Prince, following her second single, “Whatever” with DotCom and Psyfo. Nakai pre-released her single “The Man” featuring Cassper Nyovest from her EP Bragga, which was later released on September 15, 2016. In November 2017, Nakai debuted with Cassper Nyovest with her critically acclaimed song “Naaa Meaan”.
The song was number one on various South African radio stations. She presented the red carpet special for MTV Africa at the 2018 MTV Europe Music Awards on November 4, 2016. Nakai co-hosted the MTV Base hip hop show Yo! MTV raps South Africa with Siyabonga Ngwekazi in 2019. On May 3, 2019, Nakai officially announced that their debut album would be released on June 28, 2019. “Imma Boss”, the third single, and the album cover were both revealed on May 18, 2019.
On October 15, 2020, she released a documentary about the making of the album Nadia Naked on Showmax. Her record deal with Def Jam Africa was finalized in May 2020. Nakai hosted the inaugural season of Channel O’s television show Gen-Z South Africa in 2021. Nakai appeared on the Netflix original reality show Young, Famous & African in 2022.
Awards and Recognitions
- At the sixth edition of AFRIMA, she was honored as the best artist. She was named Most Elegant Performing Artist at the 2020 SA Style Awards.
- Nakai has been nominated for Artist of the Decade at the 2021 South African Hip Hop Awards.
Nadia Nakai Biography | |
|---|---|
| Real name | Nadia Nakai Dlamini |
| birth date | May 18, 1990 |
| Age | 35 years |
| Place of birth | South Africa |
| Profession | Rapper, singer, songwriter |
| University | Monash University campus in Clayton |
| qualification | graduate |
Physical Statistics | |
| Height | in feet inches – 5 feet 6 inches – in centimeters – 168 cm |
| Weight | in kilograms – 59kg – in pounds – 130 pounds |
| Hair color | Black |
| eye color | Black |
Nadia Nakai Family | |
| Father | – |
| Mother | – |
| Sister | – |
| Brother | – |
relationship status | |
| Marital status | In relation |
| affair | Yes |
| Who is Nadia Nakai’s Boyfriend? | AKA (Kiernan Jarryd Forbes) |
Personal life
Vic Mensa and Nadia had a previous relationship that ended in a breakup. Rapper star Nadia has recently been spotted dating rapper Kiernan Jarryd Forbes despite her split from Vic Mensa. Both had spoken about their connection a few days ago by uploading a photo of themselves to Instagram. However, Nadia’s supporters can claim they had a hunch that something was afoot between the two before finally making it public.
Nadia Nakai Net Worth
Nadia, a singer, composer, and rapper, makes her living from music streaming services like Apple Music, Spotify, and Amazon Music. She is known around the world for the numerous songs she has released since 2011. Nadia’s estimated net worth is approximately $2.5 million. With millions of social media followers, she gets paid to endorse multiple brands, which she promotes on her various social media channels.
Facts About Nadia Nakai
- She gets 22056 listeners monthly on Spotify.
- Many of their tracks have been listened to over a million times on Spotify.
- She was just featured on the digital cover of Glamour 2022 magazine.
- She has 2.5 million followers on Instagram.