Onejiru (born Pielina Wanjiru Schindler) is a contemporary Germany-based jazz singer. She was born in

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

and moved to

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

when she was a teenager.

Life as an artist

Born in Kenya, Pielina Wanjiru Schindler grew up in

Wanne-Eickel Herne () is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located in the Ruhr area directly between the cities of Bochum, and Gelsenkirchen. History Herne (ancient Haranni) was a tiny village until the 19th century. When the mining of coal ...

, Germany, where her musical experience started in a girls' choir and ballet lessons. Early on in her career as a singer, and by the name of Onejiru, she became a member of

Helge Schneider Helge Schneider (born 30 August 1955 in Mülheim an der Ruhr) is a German entertainer, comedian, musician, composer, author, film and theatre director, actor, and screenwriter. He frequently appears on German television and is probably best kno ...

's band Fighters. Onejiro toured Germany and Austria, then also sang on the albums of

Jan Delay Jan Phillip Eißfeldt (born 25 August 1976), known professionally as Jan Delay, is a German rapper and singer whose stylistic range includes mainly hip hop, reggae, dub and funk. An accomplished solo artist, he became known to the public as ...

, Sam Ragga Band (de) (''Loktown Hi-Life'', 2003) and Matthias Arfmann (de). The album "Prophets of Profit" was released in 2006. She is a member of the

Sisters A sister is a woman or a girl who shares parents or a parent with another individual; a female sibling. The male counterpart is a brother. Although the term typically refers to a familial relationship, it is sometimes used endearingly to r ...

(de), an all female band of singers, and they entered ''Gender Riots'' singing ''Unite'', ranked 14th at the

Bundesvision Song Contest 2008 The Bundesvision Song Contest 2008 was the fourth edition of the annual Bundesvision Song Contest musical event. The contest was held on 14 February 2008 at the TUI Arena in Hanover, Lower Saxony, following Oomph! feat. Marta Jandová's win in the ...

North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia or North-Rhine/Westphalia, commonly shortened to NRW, is a States of Germany, state () in Old states of Germany, Western Germany. With more than 18 million inhabitants, it is the List of German states by population, most ...

. On October 11, 2012, the Sisters were invited to the first

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

International Day of the Girl International Day of the Girl Child is an international observance day declared by the United Nations; it is also called the Day of Girls and the International Day of the Girl. October 11, 2012, was the first Day of the Girl Child. The observati ...

, and they selected the song "

Because I am a Girl Because I Am a Girl is an international movement by the aid organization Plan (aid organisation), Plan. The campaign is made to address the issue of sexism, gender discrimination around the world."Discrimination against girls 'still deeply entrenc ...

". They have been ambassadors for the campaign since 2010, realizing UN World Girls Day is a campaign to have equal rights for girls and boys. The song "Because I am a Girl" was composed for the campaign. During their visit, the Sisters performed at the

B. B. King Riley B. King (September 16, 1925 – May 14, 2015), known professionally as B.B. King, was an American blues guitarist, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He introduced a sophisticated style of soloing based on fluid string bending, shi ...

Blues Club in NY. With the Sisters, she was invited to

Cologne Cologne ( ; ; ) is the largest city of the States of Germany, German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with nearly 1.1 million inhabitants in the city pr ...

for the 14th Afrikan Film Festival in September 2016, since their activities fit the event's theme was “Sisters in African Cinema”. The Sisters, then named Sister Keepers before 2005 for anti-racism, expanded their focus and in 2010, visited schools in

Hamburg Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...

, Germany in events hosted by the German Federal Agency for Civic Education (

Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung The Federal Agency for Civic Education (FACE, (''bpb'')) is a German federal government agency responsible for promoting civic education. It is subordinated to the Federal Ministry of the Interior. Thomas Krüger has served as president of th ...

“bpb”). The program included works to empower girls, with dance and singing classes in which girls and boys learnt to work together. Those programs offered a chance for students to reflect on life in multicultural settings, including the issue of "Afro-Germans – Foreign in your own country". Collaboration with

Plan International Plan International is a development and humanitarian organisation based in the United Kingdom that works in over 80 countries across Africa, the Americas, and Asia, focusing on children’s rights. In 2024, Plan International reached 43 million ...

invited the Sisters to tour

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

Ghana Ghana, officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It is situated along the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, and shares borders with Côte d’Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, and Togo to t ...

Togo Togo, officially the Togolese Republic, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Ghana to Ghana–Togo border, the west, Benin to Benin–Togo border, the east and Burkina Faso to Burkina Faso–Togo border, the north. It is one of the le ...

, as well as cities in

for the project " Girls go for Goals" in 2011.

Kenyan heritage

Onejiro featured in the documentary film, ''Black Milk- Halbschwarz geht nicht'' (English: ''Black Milk- Half-black doesn’t work''), which was created by director Britta Wandaogo, a story about a Kenyan woman between "home and foreign" countries. When Onejiru visited Kenya at the age of 22, it had been 10 years since she moved to Germany, and she realized that living in Germany made her grow accustomed to the cultural environment in Germany against her roots in

Kikuyu Kikuyu or Gikuyu (Gĩkũyũ) mostly refers to an ethnic group in Kenya or its associated language. It may also refer to: *Kikuyu people, a majority ethnic group in Kenya * Kikuyu language, the language of Kikuyu people *Kikuyu, Kenya, a town in Cen ...

culture. That notion lead her to a conflict of her heart against educated mind. The film followed her dealing with the struggle to finally find peace of mind and recognize that her identity is not split between being a Kenyan and living in Germany.

I don’t have to cower myself – I’m already black!

The film "Black Milk- Halbschwarz geht nicht" was nominated for the 21st International Film Festival Emden-Norderney (de) in 2009 and entered for the DMG Award. In 2014, Onejiro went on a tour to

Addis Abeba Addis may refer to: Places *Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia **Addis Ababa University **Addis Ketema, a city district *Addis, Louisiana, a town in West Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana, US People *Addis (name) *Raptile (born 1976), stage name Ad ...

for a non-profit organization Viva con Agua for the cause of clean drinking water and performed as a guest singer at a concert by

Gentleman ''Gentleman'' (Old French: ''gentilz hom'', gentle + man; abbreviated ''gent.'') is a term for a chivalrous, courteous, or honorable man. Originally, ''gentleman'' was the lowest rank of the landed gentry of England, ranking below an esquire ...

with Tamika,

Ivy Quainoo Ivy Quainoo (born 25 August 1992) is a Germans, German singer. In February 2012, she won the The Voice of Germany (season 1), first series of ''The Voice of Germany''. In December 2017, it was announced that she would be one of six competing entr ...

and Silly Walks. At Addis Abeba, they sang the song "Ethiopia Calling". That tour continued to Kenya, where she appeared on stage with

Marteria Marten Laciny (born 4 December 1982), better known by his stage name Marteria, is a German rapper. He has met with success in Germany (his 2012 collaboration with Yasha and Miss Platnum, "Lila Wolken", reached Number 1 in the German music char ...

and Maeckes (de), as well as Octopizzo.

Discography

* 2003: ''Wasser'' (Sam Ragga Band, featuring Onejiru) Produced b
Silly Walks Discotheque
* 2003: ''Loktown Hi-Life'' (Sam Ragga Band, with :de:FlowinImmO (de) or arias ImmO,

Samy Deluxe Samy Sorge (; born 19 December 1977), commonly known as Samy Deluxe, is a German rapper and record producer from Hamburg. Early life Samy was two years old when his Sudanese father left Germany. Samy grew up with his mother's family. His ha ...

and Onejiru) * 2003: ''Heaven'' (Turtle Bay Country Club featuring Onejiru &

Patrice Patrice is a given name meaning ''noble'' or '' patrician'', related to the names Patrick and Patricia. In English, Patrice is often a feminine first name. In French, it is used as a masculine first name. Popularity In the United States, the popul ...

) from album "Universal Monstershark" Later covered by Onejiru in album "Prophets of Profit" * 2005: ''From a New World – Recomposed'' (

Deutsche Grammophon Deutsche Grammophon (; DGG) is a German classical music record label that was the precursor of the corporation PolyGram. Headquartered in Berlin Friedrichshain, it is now part of Universal Music Group (UMG) since its merger with the UMG family of ...

) * 2006: ''Prophets of Profit'' (Golden Delicious Music) * 2006: ''Motorcitysoul'' – INFRACom * 2008: ''Gender Riots'' Sisters (de), Echo Beach (Indigo (de))

Compilation contributions

* 2006: ''Prophets Of Profit'' compiled in * 2008 ''We Carry On'' compiled in

References

External links