My mother always said anything done early is good, except death. This statement couldn’t be more accurate than when I spoke to Chantel Adaorah Chukwuemeka, professionally known as Adaorah. At age 6, she made the fearless decision to perform at carnival which gave her an epiphany that music is what she wanted to do. This lit a fire under her, giving the conviction to hone her craft.
Unlike many artists, her direction towards perfecting her skills was to get a vocal coach whilst auditioning for a visual performing arts academy which she subsequently joined. During this period of auditioning, she started singing in French, Italian and Latin; telling stories, performing across the U.S. and competing with other people who sing opera and classical music.
One of rare talents is her ability to sing in a Mariah Carey voice range called “Coloratura Soprano”. Professionally starting her journey in Afrobeats in 2022 she has released three singles, her most recent being Peace of Mind. The song fuses typical afrobeats drum patterns and melodies in a way that transports you to a beach club in the peak of summer.
The delectable artist sat down with MoreBranches and we discussed everything from her sound, bridging the gap of being Los Angeles based and her plans for 2024.
Kindly introduce yourself to the audience who would be elated to know about you and your artistry?
My name is Adaorah and I’m an Afro pop singer songwriter. I’m based between Los Angeles and Lagos. And I would say that I’m probably the artist that you want to listen to when you want to have a good time and enjoy life and just vibe out. You can consider me like your new best friend that you don’t really know but you feel like you know?
You made up your mind to become a performer after your performance at a carnival, how has your artistry journey been ever since? Did your parents ever oppose your decision ?
It’s been a very diverse time since then. I think part of it was about finding my voice, I feel like I was good at everything and this is not to sound cocky, but I’m pretty good at a lot of things. I started off as an opera singer and I was singing Coloratura Soprano, that was my range; that’s like the range that’s close to what Mariah Carey sings as far as hitting those notes. And so I used to sing in Italian, French, Latin and German and was performing in theaters. It was all fun but I didn’t think this was the direction I wanted to go with my music so I emerged more into the pop and R&B kind of vibe and I really enjoyed that genre.
I did feel like it was very saturated and it felt like the industry especially in the States when it comes to pop. If you are a black woman, it’s hard to get into the pop genre that automatically puts you in the r&b or hip hop scene. So, I was still ver passionate about Pop, but I felt like something was missing and that’s when I was like I really want to go into Afrobeats and I consider myself an Afro pop artist because I still have those elements of pop in my music. Generally, I feel I’m in a genre that relates to me and I actually really enjoy being part of. As for my parents, I always say I’m grateful to have the perfect mix of culture in my family because both of my parents are Nigerians but we’re raised in the States and it has given me a perfect blend of both worlds.
How has connecting with your fans despite your shuttling between LA and Lagos been?
It’s been good. I really appreciate my fans because they follow me and support me wherever I go. So I do feel more connected with them when I come to Lagos and I love it. I actually meet them when they attend the shows I perform at. It’s harder for them to come to LA for a show that I’m doing but if I ever go live on social media, I ever post anything, they’re always right there supporting me so I really appreciate them and for being patient with me.
How would you say your reception into the Afrobeats space has been?
So far, I think that it’s less of being a male versus a woman in the industry. And I feel like it’s more of who you know, and how to connect with those people. So I like to pride myself with being personable and I like to go into every situation with a positive attitude so if I walk into a room and everyone seems uptight, I will make sure they laugh by cracking jokes or engaging with them more before I leave that room. I feel because of that trait, it’s been easier for me to connect with people. And so I think it’s just my type of way of connecting with people because I do feel like it is very male dominated industry.
Do you think that creativity involves putting your heart and soul into your work? Or is it more like letting your mind flow freely to witness the surprising results of your actions?
I think it’s a little of both. Because you know, how they say, an idea is just an idea without action. So like, it’s just kind of like in the air right. So, creativity should be given the room to flow and actually create something because sometimes when you force it, then you come up with low results. You need the space to come up with an idea, fall in love with it but then you need to be proactive in order to execute it, and to bring it to the forefront. I like to pride myself in being strategic and creative at the same time because you need both in order to bring it to life.
You are trained in coloratura soprano, will you say your training has influenced what you create?
Yes, I think that it’s helped me a lot with technicality and preserving my voice. I think that it’s very important because my voice is my instrument. And you can break just like you can break a string on a guitar you can break your vocal cords. Mariah Carey went through it. Beyonce went through it everyone has gone through it because you’re constantly using it right? So being trained as a coloratura soprano taught me how to use the right form. When to stop, when to keep going, how to continue to practice and Train My Voice because our voice develops over time. So that kind of gives me that training to make sure that I preserve the voice that I have.
Looking back at 2023, what’s something you are grateful for and something you wished you had handled better
Oh, I am extremely grateful for Mr. Michael Odion. He is the one who helped me merge into the industry here in Nigeria. Before then it was more about what I really wanted to do but didn’t know how and Michael Odion from Premiere records assisted me to come into the space and connect with people. He helped me to release my first track ROCK MY BORRY that features Andre vibes- producer of Rema’s Calm Down hit. And then in regards to what I could do better, I think that’s with my fans. I think everyone can cumulatively say they wish they probably got more music from me last year. So that’s one thing I’m going to work on this year; I’m going to be dropping a lot of music,more visuals and just have more for my fans to indulge.
Asides music, what are your hobbies?
Oh, yes, I love to travel. I really enjoy taking classes of things that I have never done before Like, I did a pottery class, I have done archery before, cooking classes but of different culture foods. I enjoy learning new things and keeping my brain moving. Then I also just enjoy my downtime, to be honest, I feel like being in this industry is so much stimulation, a lot many people pulling you in different directions so sometimes I like to just sit and do something that’s just about me. it could be working out or meditation or literally Netflix and chilling.
What’s your 2024 looking like, any hint on projects you would be releasing?
I have my next single coming out soon; I’m very excited. We did a collaboration with an old school Afrobeats artist and his song is a timeless piece and he allowed us to remake it and so that’s gonna be dope. And then following that, I’m currently developing my EP as we speak. So that EP will drop hopefully by Q2 of this year.
How would you like to be regarded or remembered? What’s one legacy you’re trying to leave behind.
Adaorah was a performer. I take pride when I get on stage and I give my audience a show. And not an artist who is only taking you on a journey but giving you an experience. So I want people to know that when you see Adaorah, it’s an experience. It’s not just a show.
Interviewed by Awele Uchdiuno
Edited by Amirah Deji-Abiola
