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“Her sound is a profound combination of soul, R and B with a twist of mild pop delivered with powerful emotional vocals, wedded to lush melodies that go straight to the heart. Meet Christine Ben-Ameh; A singer, whose music resonates the truth of personal experience, Her music can be emotionally intense and beautiful it goes much further by exploring timeless universal themes of love, friendship, happiness, loss and fortitude in the face of whatever life brings.
She is a product of life that has been an extraordinary journey full of joys and losses. Her signature pop blues style was first singled out for attention when she won the MTN sponsored talent contest held in University of Jos, Plateau State-Nigeria in 2005. But it wasn’t until 2007, when she beat over three thousand other contestants across Nigeria to win the Nokia First Chance music reality TV show watched by millions of viewers, that her incredible talent was first showcased on a national scale. The opportunity was short-lived, however, when the promised £1 million-worth record deal with a guarantee of endorsement deals and worldwide distribution by one of the Big five Major international Record Label failed to materialize, Christine returned to complete her university degree in Mass Communication at the University of Jos. This was far from the end of her music aspiration.
Born on 12th October at William Harvey Hospital, Asford-Kent, England, Christine comes from a family that has been very supportive of her music career from the beginning. In the singer’s words, ‘the time spent with family always registered as a high and happy moment their support has helped tremendously in developing my music talent’. For a child that started speaking shortly after her second birthday, and whose first few words were at first incomprehensible songs growing into several disjointed pieces, – since crafting her first song at age 8, Christine’s sound has grown to produce the beautiful ballads and infectious songs that has continued to captivate her ever-increasing listeners. Her winning the Nokia First Chance competition in 2007 didn’t come as a shock to those who know how distinct Christine is within and outside the entertainment industry. She actually received a personal congratulatory message from Gabriel Suswam Governor of her home state; Benue. She continued to work on building up her music and industry network, performing at the London Calling Music Fair of June 2008 at the Nigerian Pavilion, where she encountered a bad experience regardless, her relentless pursuit of a successful music career continued. Her insatiable appetite for improvement as an all-around performer led her into learning how to play the guitar, since she mastered the art; guitar has become a vital part of her ensemble.
As part of her industry experience, she worked with such notables as Omawumi and Jodie of West African Idols at the first future awards in January 2008. From one show to another, each live performance is an intense moment that allows the spectator to penetrate into her unique universe. In 2009, she performed at the Leap Awards 2009 and has performed with the Society of Performing Artistes of Nigeria (SPAN) among several others. After graduating with a BA in Mass Communication in 2010, the hardworking musician went back to the studio to commence work on her debut album. On the last day of year 2010, Her Experimental debut Album titled “Life under Construction” was released. “May this be Love” was the first single off the album and without a doubt, it cemented Christine’s place as one of the most authentic Singer-Songwriter to come out of Nigeria apart from enjoying rave reviews.
Years of listening to various musical influences such as; Whitney Houston, Brandy, Alicia Keys, India Arie, Sheryl Crow, Billy Ocean, Stevie Wonder Bob Dylan, Bob Marley, and Fela Kuti, has been a reflection of the caliber of Christine’s talent and the diversity of music she embraced she sifted through to find her voice. In a recent interview she said “Miseducation of Lauryn Hill’ is one album that made me crave for a significant place in the industry’. She also made reference to Whitney Houston’s performance in Movie classic ‘The bodyguard’ as another inspiring moment that got her thinking ‘she could do better in her own way’. Recently, precisely June 2011, She released of the Video for “May this be Love” to a widespread acclaim as she continues to promote her songs towards the official release of her Album later in 2011.
It would not be an overstatement to say that this is only the beginning for Christine Ben-Ameh, a budding singer and songwriter who believes that “the greatest songs tell the best stories and they are straight from the heart to heal the listeners …my path is to bring timeless music to the people and I’ve found it”. She is determined to pave an exciting direction in the international music industry, and there’s no stopping her.”
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