Coco Mbassi (born 28 February 1969) is a musical artist originating from

Cameroon Cameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon, is a country in Central Africa. It shares boundaries with Nigeria to the west and north, Chad to the northeast, the Central African Republic to the east, and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the R ...

, born in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, France, and based in London, UK. Winner of the

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Découvertes Prize in 1996 with the song "Muenge Mwa Ndolo", she toured worldwide and her first album, ''Sepia'', was released in 2001. This album was nominated in 2002 for the BBC Radio 3 World Music Awards, and won the German World Music CD Critics' Awards. Her second album ''Sisea'' was released in 2003. After touring, she released a live tour DVD, ''Coco Mbassi Tour''. Prior to her solo career, she sang with various artists as a backing vocalist, live or in recording sessions (including with Salif Keita, the jazz band Sixun, Toure Kunda, Ray Lema)., and Manu Dibango. Mbassi performed at

Live 8 Live 8 was a string of benefit concerts that took place on 2 July 2005, in the G8 states and South Africa. They were timed to precede the G8 conference and summit held at the Gleneagles Hotel in Auchterarder, Scotland, from 6–8 July 2005 ...

, at the

Eden Project The Eden Project () is a visitor attraction in Cornwall, England. The project is located in a reclaimed china clay clay pit, pit.Ordnance Survey (2005). ''OS Explorer Map 107 – Fowey, Looe & Lostwithiel''. . The complex is dominated by two h ...

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. A lover of music in general, some of her favourites are '' The Messiah'' of

Handel George Frideric (or Frederick) Handel ( ; baptised , ; 23 February 1685 – 14 April 1759) was a German-British Baroque composer well-known for his operas, oratorios, anthems, concerti grossi, and organ concerti. Born in Halle, Germany, H ...

Stevie Wonder Stevland Hardaway Morris (; Judkins; born May 13, 1950), known professionally as Stevie Wonder, is an American and Ghanaian singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer. He is regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th c ...

Bob Marley Robert Nesta Marley (6 February 1945 – 11 May 1981) was a Jamaican singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Considered one of the pioneers of reggae, he fused elements of reggae, ska and rocksteady and was renowned for his distinctive voca ...

and the Cameroonian artist Dina Bell. Mbassi was on tour with Totem (Cirque du Soleil) as the lead female vocalist of the production in 2011. Her latest release is the album ''Jóa'' (2014). After being selected for the BEAM 2018 showcase, Coco Mbassi has written a musical called 'Haendel on the Estate' extracts of which were performed at Ovalhouse theatre in February 2019 as part of their First Bites Spring 2019 programme. The singer also recently played the part of 'The Old Woman' in Cervantes Theatre's director Jorge de Juan García's adaptation of Lorca's famed play Yerma.

References

1969 births Living people French musicians {{France-musician-stub