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Monicazation

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Monicazation
File:Monica-1.jpg
Background information
Birth nameMonica Omorodion Swaida
OriginEdo,
Nigeria
GenresPop, R&B, Hip hop Soul, soul, blues, Rock
Occupation(s)Singer, songwriter
InstrumentVocals
Years active2007 –present

Monica Omorodion Swaida (born September 1), known as Monicazation is a Nigerian/American singer, actress, movie producer and CEO of an insurance company. She is the producer of the movie, ‘Esohe’, featuring both Hollywood and Nollywood stars, she was one of Majek Fashek's backup singers .[1]

Early life

Monicazation was born in England and was raised in Warri Nigeria. She started her professional career at the age of 12. She won a song writing competition with Punch Newspapers, which took her to Lagos where her musical career started at the age of 14.ref name=themidwestjournal>"If I didn't help Majek Fashek and he died, I would not have forgiven myself'-Monica Omorodion Swaida". Retrieved 22 February 2016.</ref>

Monicazation attended Nana Primary school, Warri, and secondary school at Mount Wachusett Community College in Gardner Massachusetts,she started singing right as a teen. While at the university of Massachusetts Lowell, Monica was the dance leader at Alumni association. She lead her group and did live shows at the university and she wrote poetry for in the drama club that were published.[2][3] She then moved to Nsukka to receive a degree in social work at University of Nigeria. During her school years, Waje focused on her musical works such as school concerts and fellowships. She listened and learned from her mentors such as Majek Fashek and Aretha Franklin to improve her music.[4][5]

Career

Singer

she started singing as a teenager and was introduced to music studio with Sam Morris of Otto records and this led her to Aibtonia studio, where she met her first band members Sound on Sound and was signed by Poligram records. also met Majek Fashek and many other crews. she used be in studios during my school breaks. Open for Majek Fashek, Onyenka, Christie Essien and many other artists. Went on tours as a teen with Majek Fashek. She however still believed she could touch a lot more with her singing talent. Monicazation released her full album titled Monicazation in September 2014 This gave her the drive to stay focused in her first love, music. youthful Monica teamed up with so many stars then, going on musical performances during which she garnered so much enthusiasm and determination to become one of Nigeria’s music stars.[6]

As a teenager, she met Majek Fashek at Aibitonia Studios at Anthony in Lagos. He was introduced to me by late Arakatula. At that time, I was part of a group called ‘Sound on Sound’ with an American called Scratch and three other singers. We released our first album with Poligram Records..[1]

Majek Fashek taught her a lot about song writing and eliminated her stage fears. she didn’t play as much with Sunny Okosun like she played w i t h Majek. I met Sunny Okosun during ‘MAMSER’ tour with Majek and became friends with his backup singers. When Majek was taking breaks from long tours, she decided to go with Sunny Okosun. Anytime she was on break with Majek, she went with Okosun and also learned from him."[7]

Actress

She has acted in a various movies including, Affairs of the heart with Joseph Benjamin, Stella Damasus in 2014, She played lead in a movie written by director Obed Joe titled Burning Love in 2014.She later produced her award winning movie titled faces of Love with Robert Peters. Starring Razaaq Adoti, Syr Law, John Dumelo among many others. Swaida, an insurance business owner, returned to her entertainment roots after four years. Faces of Love is only the second movie she produced and her first to receive an award.in a movie faces of Love, she plays a key character and produced the soundtrack. She also serves as a co-executive producer, She decided to take on the responsibility to promote art that can convey the "true" images of African people.[8]

Personal life

Monica started writing poems and music while she was a teenager. While in Nana Primary school Warri, Monica was writing songs with her younger sister. They used to sing and rap even before she knew anything about rapping! She was always in anything that represented showcase. She first fell in love with drama while in Hussey College Warri. She joined a theater group Called Silver Line Productions with Felix okwelum as the theatre director in Warri. She acted on stage doing dramatic poetry like Abiku etc. She also acted in plays like The Gods are not to blame, House Asunder and many more. She toured with Silver Line Production for years before focusing more on music.Her love for background stage is one with long history. She did background singing for big stars Like Majek Fashek, Sunny Okosun and Evi Edna etc. She did a lot of background singing for lots of other artists. She also did lots of jingles and voice over. She toured extensively with Majek Fashek’s band all over Nigeria and Africa. Stayed in most of the best hotels in Nigeria. Her fondest experience was when they played at the Oba Palace in Benin. </ref>[9] Monica Omorodion Swaida may not ring a bell, but it did in the 1990s, along with the likes of Evi Edna, Majek Fashek and the late Sunny Okosun, among others that held sway in the music industry.</ref>[10]

Discography

Selected singles

  • "Under Your Influence" (2016)
  • "Jesus" (2015)
  • "Mambo"(2015)
  • "Moved On" (2015)
  • "Na You" (2015)
  • "Palava Dey" (2015)
  • "My Baby Is Gone" (2015)

Awards and nominations

Awards

  • ACADEMIA MUSIC AWARD CALIFORNIA 2015,

Nominations

  • GOLDEN ICONS ACADEMY MOVIE AWARDS (best new video)
  • LANFA MOVIE AND MUSIC AWARD
  • PEOPLE'S CHOICE AWARD WITH NAFCA, 2015 (FACES OF LOVE)
  • [11]

References

  1. ^ a b "Music is my first love –Monicazation". Retrieved 04 Sept 2016. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |accessdate= (help)
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference imdb was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ "Monica Swaida Biography". www.imdb.com. Retrieved 22 February 2016.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference encomium.ng was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ "I am a complete entertainer' – America based Actress cum singer, MONICA OMORODION". Encomium. Retrieved 28 February 2015.
  6. ^ "US-Based Monica Omorodion Recounts How Majek Fashek Greatly Inspired Her". Retrieved 27 December 2015.
  7. ^ "Actress talks difference between filming in Nigeria and America". http://pulse.ng. Chidumga Izuzu. Retrieved 13 August 2015. {{cite web}}: External link in |website= (help)
  8. ^ Egole, Anozie (24 August 2013). "Her Own Story to Tell". Hiroko Sato. Retrieved 12 January 2014.
  9. ^ title=U.S. based music act, Monica, returns with a bang http://guardian.ng/saturday-magazine/u-s-based-music-act-monica-returns-with-a-bang/ title=U.S. based music act, Monica, returns with a bang. Retrieved 30 July 2016 publisher=Funsho Akinwale. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help); Check date values in: |accessdate= (help); Missing or empty |title= (help); Missing pipe in: |accessdate= (help); Missing pipe in: |url= (help)
  10. ^ title=My Album Is Like A Box Of Chocolate, Says Waida http://thenewsnigeria.com.ng/2015/02/my-album-is-like-a-box-of-chocolate-says-waida/ title=My Album Is Like A Box Of Chocolate, Says Waida. Retrieved 18 January 2015. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help); Missing or empty |title= (help); Missing pipe in: |url= (help)
  11. ^ "Her Own Story to Tell". University of Massachussets. Hiroko Sato. Retrieved 12 January 2014.
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