Ninja (British rapper)

Nkechi Ka Egenamba (born 1983),[1][2] (first name pronounced n-kay-chee)[3] known as Ninja, is an English rapper and the female lead vocalist for the British indie band The Go! Team. Doing a mixture of rapping, chanting and singing, Ninja is well known for her energetic stage performances and dancing. In 2005, NME voted Ninja the 15th coolest person in music.[4]

Ninja
Ninja performing with The Go! Team
Background information
Birth nameNkechi Ka Egenamba
Born1983 (age 37–38)
OriginLondon, England
Genres
Years active2004–present
Associated actsThe Go! Team

Early life and education

Born Nkechi Ka in 1983,[1][2] "Nkechi" is short for Nkechinyere, and means "what God has given" or "gift of God" in Igbo, the language of the Igbo people, an ethnic group in West Africa, numbering in the tens of millions.[5]

Ninja is from London.[6] Her father is a Nigerian lawyer,[7] and her mother is half-Egyptian, half-Nigerian.[7] Ninja is one of five children and was brought up in a very strict household.[7] She had been studying at university before she joined The Go! Team.[8]

The Go! Team
The Go! Team playing at Berlin Festival in July 2007

Ninja became lead singer for The Go! Team after founder Ian Parton created the first The Go! Team studio album. With Ninja, the live band became a "separate entity" to the original studio vision, as their performances became radically different from their recordings, particularly due to Ninja's freestyled vocals contrary to the sampled vocals present on the album.[9] Parton acknowledged that Ninja had become the "face of the band" in an interview with Erik Leijon in September 2007.[10]

Non-Go! Team work

Ninja co-wrote and performed on Simian Mobile Disco tracks "Its The Beat" and "Hot Dog" on SMD's debut album Attack Decay Sustain Release.

Ninja co-wrote and performed on the track "Time Machine" by French band Rinocerose.[11]

She co-wrote and performed on the Cut Chemist track "The Audience is Listening".

Discography with The Go! Team

Albums

Singles
  • "Junior Kickstart" 7", 12" and CD single (2003)
  • "The Power Is On" 12" single (2004)
  • "Ladyflash" 7" and CD single (2004) #68 UK
  • "Bottle Rocket" 7" and CD single (2005) #64 UK
  • "Ladyflash" (re-issue) 7" and CD single (2006) #26 UK
  • "Grip Like a Vice" single (2007) #57 UK
  • "Doing It Right" Single (2007) #55 UK, #3 UK Indie

EPs

See also

References
  1. Hugh Porter (October 13, 2005). ""All Systems are Go!"". Time Magazine.
  2. "MTV. "The Go! Team | Lyrics | Huddle Formation"". Mtv.com. September 13, 2004.
  3. "AFROCENTRIC FEMALE NAMES". Web.archive.org. January 18, 2008. Archived from the original on 2008-01-18.
  4. "The Cambridge Student. "The return of the Go! Team" by Saul Glasman. February 1, 2008". Archived from the original on February 15, 2012. Retrieved April 10, 2008.
  5. Campbell, Mike. "Meaning, origin and history of the name Nkechinyere". Behindthename.com.
  6. "DCist. "Concert Preview: The Go! Team" by Andrew Wiseman. October 30, 2007". Archived from the original on February 7, 2008.
  7. "Article 404 - GoErie.com - Erie, PA". GoErie.com. Archived from the original on September 24, 2015. Retrieved December 6, 2020.
  8. Margaret Chrystall (February 28, 2008). ""Go for it!"". Highland-news.co.uk.
  9. "There's an "I" in The Go! Team". Music.aol.ca. 2007-09-14. Retrieved 2007-09-14.
  10. "Chart Attack - Best Magazine 2020". Chartattack.com. Archived from the original on June 7, 2011.
  11. "RINOCEROSE - Time machine (clip officiel)". YouTube. 2009-05-11. Retrieved 2020-05-21.
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