Kehinde Lijadu (22 October 1948 – 9 November 2019) and Taiwo Lijadu (born 22 October 1948) were identical twin sisters from

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

who performed as the Lijadu Sisters from the mid-1960s to the 1980s. They achieved success in Nigeria, and also had a more modest success in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

. Described as an influential dynamic who mixed

Afrobeat Afrobeat (also known as Afrofunk) is a West African music genre, fusing influences from Nigerian (such as Yoruba) and Ghanaian (such as highlife) music, with American funk, jazz, and soul influences. With a focus on chanted vocals, complex i ...

sounds with

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

and

disco Disco is a music genre, genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the late 1960s from the United States' urban nightclub, nightlife, particularly in African Americans, African-American, Italian-Americans, Italian-American, LGBTQ ...

, the sisters retired from the music scene in the late 1980s, reforming and performing sporadically during the 2010s up until Kehinde's death in 2019. They were the cousins of the popular Nigerian musician

Fela Kuti Fela Aníkúlápó Kútì (born Olufela Olusegun Oludotun Ransome-Kuti; 15 October 1938 – 2 August 1997) was a Nigerians, Nigerian musician and political activist. He is regarded as the principal innovator of Afrobeat, a Nigerian music genre t ...

Career

The twins grew up in the Nigerian city of

Ibadan Ibadan (, ; ) is the Capital city, capital and most populous city of Oyo State, in Nigeria. It is the List of Nigerian cities by population, third-largest city by population in Nigeria after Lagos and Kano (city), Kano, with a total populatio ...

, and were inspired musically by various artists including

Aretha Franklin Aretha Louise Franklin ( ; March 25, 1942 – August 16, 2018) was an American singer, songwriter and pianist. Honored as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Soul", she was twice named by ''Rolling Stone'' magazine as the Roll ...

Victor Olaiya Victor Abimbola Olaiya , (31 December 1930 – 12 February 2020), also known as Dr Victor Olaiya, was a Nigerian trumpeter who played in the highlife style. Though famous in Nigeria during the 1950s and early 1960s, Olaiya received little recog ...

and

Miriam Makeba Zenzile Miriam Makeba ( , ; 4 March 1932 – 9 November 2008), nicknamed Mama Africa, was a South African singer, songwriter, actress, and civil rights activist. Associated with musical genres including African popular music, Afropop, ja ...

. They had guidance from music producer Lemmy Jackson who is credited with helping them with their early successes. Their music was a mix of

Jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

Reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica during the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its Jamaican diaspora, diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, "Do the Reggay", was the first ...

and Waka. Sometimes they sang in English and other times in their native language, Yoruba. One of their first songs was arranged with assistance from jazz saxophone player

Orlando Julius Orlando Julius Aremu Olusanya Ekemode, known professionally as Orlando Julius or Orlando Julius Ekemode (22 September 1943 – 14 April 2022) was a Nigerian saxophonist, singer, bandleader, and songwriter closely associated with afrobeat music. ...

. They released their first album ''Iya Mi Jowo'' in 1969 after winning a record contract with

Decca Records Decca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis (Decca), Edward Lewis after his acquisition of a gramophone manufacturer, The Decca Gramophone Company. It set up an American subsidiary under the Decca name, which bec ...

. They worked with the late Biddy Wright on their third album ''Danger'' (1976). American rapper

Nas Nas (born 1973) is the stage name of American rapper Nasir Jones. Nas, NaS, or NAS may also refer to: Aviation * Nasair, a low-cost airline carrier and subsidiary based in Eritrea * National Air Services, an airline in Saudi Arabia ** Nas Air (S ...

sampled "Life's Gone Down Low", a track in the ''Danger'' album, as "Life's Gone Low" on his 2006 Mixtape without crediting the duo. The Lijadu Sisters recorded ''Sunshine'' in 1978 and ''Horizon Unlimited'' in 1979. The sisters were top stars in Nigeria during the 1970s and 1980s. During these years, they branched out to America and Europe and found modest success. They performed with drummer

Ginger Baker Peter Edward "Ginger" Baker (19 August 1939 – 6 October 2019) was an English drummer. His work in the 1960s and 1970s earned him the reputation of "rock's first superstar drummer", for a style that melded jazz and Music of Africa, Africa ...

's band ''Salt'' at the 1972 Munich Olympic Games in

Munich Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

at the World Music Festival. ''The New York Times'' reported that the sisters were "smiling free spirits" who mixed "sisterly banter and flirtatiousness" in their performances which featured positive messages such as the benefit of returning home. Their reggae number ''Reincarnation'' insisted that if reincarnation was a reality, then they would like to be reincarnated again into the home where they grew up. Some of their song lyrics were politically themed. Their harmonies were described as "ethereal". In 1984

Shanachie Records Shanachie Records is an American, New Jersey–based record label, founded in 1975 by Richard Nevins and Dan Collins. The label is named for the Gaelic word '' seanchaí'' (anglicised as shanachie), an Irish storyteller. It was previously distr ...

released ''Double Trouble'' in the US which was a compilation of their previously recorded material from their albums ''Horizon Unlimited'' and ''Danger''. Their song "Orere Elejigbo" was included on a double CD entitled ''Nigeria 70'', ''Africa 100'', and was added to the ''Roots & Wings'' playlist in 1997. During the 1980s, the sisters moved to

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

, New York. They performed in various venues including the lower Manhattan club Wetlands and in Harlem with King Sunny Adé's African Beats as their backing band. They performed with the Philadelphia-based band Philly Gumbo. They were featured in the music documentary ''Konkombé'' by English director Jeremy Marre, and their music was featured in the Nigerian installment of the 14-episode world music series entitled ''Beats of the Heart'' which aired on

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...

during the late 1980s. On 1 April 2014, they appeared live at an all-star tribute, the Atomic Bomb! Band, for reclusive Nigerian musician William Onyeabor at the

Barbican Centre The Barbican Centre is a performing arts centre in the Barbican Estate of the City of London, England, and the largest of its kind in Europe. The centre hosts classical and contemporary music concerts, theatre performances, film screenings a ...

in London. They sang some of their own tracks including "Danger", as well as providing backing and lead vocals on William Onyeabor material. They also performed with the Atomic Bomb! Band on ''

The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon ''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by actor and comedian Jimmy Fallon that airs on NBC. The show premiered on February 17, 2014, and is produced by Broadway Video and Universal Television. It i ...

'' and on tour dates in New York, San Francisco and Los Angeles in May 2014. On 9 November 2019, Kehinde suffered a

stroke Stroke is a medical condition in which poor cerebral circulation, blood flow to a part of the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: brain ischemia, ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and intracranial hemorrhage, hemor ...

and died on the same day, at the age of 71. In July 2024,

The Numero Group The Numero Group is an archival record label that creates compilations of previously released music, reissues original albums, and creates album reconstructions from a variety of musical genres. The label, known as Numero, was founded in 2003 ...

announced they would be remastering and reissuing the duo's discography.

Reviews

* ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' music critic

Jon Pareles Jon Pareles (born 1953) is an American journalist who is the chief popular music critic in the arts section of ''The New York Times''.Memphis soul Memphis soul, also known as the Memphis sound, is the most prominent strain of Southern soul. It is a shimmering, sultry style produced in the 1960s and 1970s at Stax Records and Hi Records in Memphis, Tennessee, featuring melodic unison horn line ...

". Critic Peter Watrous described the sisters sound as "riveting". * Reviewer Myles Boisen in '' All Music Guide'' wrote that they were "a rarity in the African music scene" and added that they were "liberated twin sisters who share the spotlight on smooth close harmonies and command a sharp, inventive backing band."

Discography

References

External links

* – official site * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lijadu Sisters 1948 births 2019 deaths Living people Nigerian reggae musical groups Nigerian musical duos Yoruba women musicians Nigerian twins Musicians from Ibadan Twin musical duos 20th-century Nigerian women singers 21st-century Nigerian women singers English-language singers from Nigeria Yoruba-language singers of Nigeria Musical groups established in 1965 Musical groups disestablished in 1990 Musical groups reestablished in 2014 Musical groups disestablished in 2019 Atomic Bomb! Band members Female musical duos Identical twin females 1965 establishments in Nigeria 2019 disestablishments in Nigeria The Numero Group artists Nigerian world music musicians Nigerian political music artists