Ayra Starr

Oyinkansola Sarah Aderibigbe (born 14 June 2002), professionally known as Ayra Starr ( EYE-r?-STAR), is a Nigerian singer and songwriter. She achieved mainstream international recognition in 2022 with the release of her song "Rush". It charted in several countries, including Switzerland, Ireland, and the United Kingdom, where it peaked at number 24. It earned Starr a nomination at the 66th Annual Grammy Awards for Best African Music Performance. In early 2021, she released her self-titled debut EP and its lead single "Away", which spent two consecutive weeks at number four on Nigeria's TurnTable Top 50 chart; "Away" also peaked at number 17 on the Billboard Top Thriller Global chart. Her debut EP was followed by the release of her debut studio album, 19 & Dangerous (2021). Categorized mainly as Afropop and R&B, the work received favorable critical reception and spawned two top 40 hits in Nigeria. The lead single, "Bloody Samaritan", became the first song by a solo female artist to reach the number-one position in the Top 50 charts. In August that same year, Starr was ranked number three on Billboard's Next Big Sound. In 2024, Starr released her second album, The Year I Turned 21.

Oyinkansola Sarah Aderibigbe was born on June 14, 2002 in Cotonou, Bénin, and raised in Cotonou and Lagos, Nigeria. She is Nigerian and of Yoruba heritage, with both parents from Kwara State. She was raised in a multilingual home, and learned both Yoruba and French during her early years in Bénin. She is also fluent in English and Nigerian Pidgin, which she often uses during her work and press interactions. She is the second of five children. She and her older brother, Dami, played music together in their childhood. At age ten, she joined the school choir and began writing songs with Dami, guided by their mother, a former singer. The siblings formed a band and regularly entered local music competitions together. Aderibigbe has expressed that her family's frequent relocations, driven by her father's business ventures, made it difficult to form lasting friendships during high school. Though Aderibigbe gravitated toward the arts as a teen, her father often urged her to prioritize academics. She attended Les Cours Sonou University in Cotonou and received a BA degree in international relations and political science. During her college years, she was often bullied by her classmates because of her age and appearance. She likens music to an escape, saying "I would listen to Nicki Minaj on my way to school, and I'd feel like the second Nicki Minaj." Aderibigbe's mother supported her musical ambitions and reportedly encouraged her to pursue a singing career.