Wiyaala

Wiyaala, which means 'the doer' in her local Sissala dialect, is from Funsi, a typical village in the Upper West Region of Ghana. She is the second of four sisters and her mother is a chorister from a traditional musical family, which has been a major influence in her rise from obscurity. At an early age, Wiyaala attracted attention as an entertainer, dancer, artist and athlete, often organising shows for the village chief and excelling as an aggressive midfielder in the Upper West Girls football team.

In 2012, Wiyaala came to national attention when she led her group Black N Peach to an emphatic victory in the Vodafone Icons Reality Show. In 2013, she began her solo career and with the release of her eponymous album 'Wiyaala' in 2014, she has now firmly established herself as one of Ghana’s brightest female stars with hit songs such as 'Rock My Body', 'Make Me Dance', 'Tinambanyi' and 'Africa'.

Her credits include features on BBC’s Global Beats, CNN’s African Voices, numerous awards and nominations including Most Promising Artiste in Africa and the Revelation of the African Continent at the All Africa Music Awards (AFRIMA) 2014, Best Female Vocalist and Songwriter at the Vodafone Ghana Music Awards 2015 and Best African Video at AFRIMA 2015.

Performance credits include WOMAD UK, Ronnie Scotts Jazz Club, BBC 3 and many festivals in Germany, Denmark and Canada. In Africa, she has performed alongside Yvonne Chaka Chaka, Joss Stone, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Yemi Alade, Davido and many others.

Wiyaala is active in protecting the rights of children and campaigns to end child marriage in her role as an appointed influencer for Unicef Ghana and the Ministry of Gender.