French-Malian record-breaker Aya Nakamura and Nigerian superstar Ayra Starr join forces on a surprise remake of “Hypé,” demonstrating a true cultural exchange of Caribbean Zouk and the classic Naija sound. Two of the most prominent artists of their generation with a combined total of 20M+ monthly listeners and 50M+ fans on socials, the single arrives alongside their most ambitious music video to date, shot in Lagos and Directed by Yanis Challab. Currently, Nakamura boasts an impressive catalog of 7+ Billion and was recently crowned “Female Artist of The Year” at France Music Awards 2024 (Victoires de la Musique) this February.
Aya Nakamura finished 2023 on a high note as the most streamed female of the year on Spotify France and was also crowned the most streamed female artist of the last 15 years since the platform’s creation. Earlier that year, she had released her chart-topping 4th album DNK, which was #1 on the album charts for two weeks, propelled by the hit singles “Baby” (Diamond certified in France) and “T’as Peur” feat. Myke Towers (Platinum in Spain). She returned to the stage selling out three Paris ACCOR Arena in less than 2 hours (3 x 20,000 capacity), headlined the biggest festivals across Europe (Lollapalooza Paris, Les Ardentes Belgium, Paleo Switzerland…), performed for the first time in London (OVO Wembley Arena), Antilles Stadiums, Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the Ivory Coast before closing her tour with a performance in Mali where she was born.
Just last month, Aya cemented her “Queen of France” status by winning the France Music Awards for Female Artist of the Year while releasing a surprise single, the Zouk-infused, deeply rooted in the French West Indies sound: Hypé. Seeing a live performance of this track on socials, Ayra Starr connected with Aya and hopped quickly on the international version. Since no official video had been released yet, Aya flew to Lagos, Nigeria for the two to shoot together in a stunning setup.
At only 28 years old, multi-award-winning French-Malian superstar Aya Nakamura has already claimed her role as one of the most important figures in contemporary French music. Born Aya Danioko in Bamako, Mali, she comes from a family of Griots, West African storytellers and praise singers. She grew up in the Parisian suburb of Aulnay-Sous-Bois and later took the stage name Nakamura after the character Hiro Nakamura from NBC’s popular series Heroes.
