Jidenna is a Nigerian-American hip-hop artist, songwriter, and music producer. He shot into the limelight in 2015 with the release of the smash hit track “Classic Man” which ultimately earned him his first Grammy nomination. He has a longrunning working relationship with Janelle Monáe which has yielded several brilliant collaborations including the 2015 viral hit song Yoga and thrilling stage performance at the 2015 BET Awards. In 2017, Jidenna dropped his first studio album The Chief under Monáe’s music label Wondaland Records.
Bio – What Does Jidenna Mean?
This multi-talented music star was born Jidenna Theodore Mobisson on the 4th day of May 1985 in Wisconsin Rapids to a Caucasian mother and an African father. His first name “Jidenna” comes from his father’s Igbo ethnic group of Southeastern Nigeria and it literally means “hold on to the father”. Jidenna spent some part of his early childhood in his father’s native country, however, the family was forced to return to the US in the early 1990s after suffering a kidnap attempt. Upon their return to the US, the family lived in different parts of Massachusetts including Norwood and Milton.
Jidenna had his high school education at Milton Academy and there he formed a rap group Black Spadez. The talented youngster had his first experience in songwriting and music production with the group and prior to their graduation in 2003, they released a self-titled debut album Black Spadez. He originally enrolled to study sound engineering at Sanford University, however, his interest was later swayed and he ultimately majored in “ritualistic arts”. Upon graduation from college, he gained employment as a full-time teacher whilst also pursuing his music career on the side. His persistent efforts eventually paid off and he got a recording contract with Wondaland Records owned by Janelle Monáe.
Jidenna swiftly set to work on his music after landing the record deal and by January 2015, he dropped his first official single Classic Man, a collaboration with labelmate Roman GianArthur. The song was a monster hit as it received massive airplay in the US and other countries of the world. Classic Man got onto the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Airplay chart at #49 and later reached the peak position of #22. It was equally nominated for the Best Rap/Song Collaboration at the 58th Annual Grammy Awards.
In addition to Classic Man, Jidenna worked on several other songs with his Wondaland Records labelmates all of which ultimately resulted in an EP titled The Eephus, released in August 2015. As a testament to the brilliant run the music star had in 2015, Jidenna received multiple accolades at the 2015 Soul Train Music Awards including the Best New Artist award. Having launched his music career with a bang, Jidenna resumed work on his debut studio album The Chief which was eventually released on February 17, 2017.
Net Worth
Jidenna has achieved an enviable level of success in his relatively short time in the music industry. His commercial debut single Classic Man attained platinum certification in the US and also earned the singer his first Grammy nomination. The music star’s debut album The Chief also received positive reviews upon its release in early 2017.
Thanks to his flourishing music career and other bankable ventures, Jidenna has amassed an impressive net worth of $1 million, and going by his antecedents, the multitalented music star is definitely not slowing down anytime soon.
Parents
Jidenna was born to an American mother Tama Mobisson, an accountant, and a Nigerian father Oliver Mobisson, a computer scientist and college professor. Mr. Mobisson was one of the founding professors of Enugu State University of Science and Technology (ESUT).
Sadly, Jidenna’s father died of a heart attack on February 18, 2010. In 2016, the singer instituted a scholarship at the Enugu State University of Science and Technology in honor of his late father Professor Oliver Mobisson.
Girlfriend, Is Jidenna Married?
Jidenna is currently known to be unmarried. Of course, the music star may want to get married sometime in the future but until that happens, he still belongs to the class of eligible bachelors. Back in 2016, the Classic Man crooner was rumored to be in a relationship with sports journalist Rosalyn Gold-Onwude, a fellow Nigerian-American. The fate of that relationship is currently uncertain but there are strong indications that the two have parted ways.
Jidenna stated in a 2017 interview that he was single, however, a lot of time has rolled by since then and it is very possible that this fact may have changed. There is also a possibility that the singer has found love in another relationship but has opted to keep it on a low key.
Height and Other Body Measurements
Jidenna Mobisson is 6 feet 1 inch in height. This Classic Man sports an enviably trim physique at a bodyweight of 77 kg (169½ lb). His chest circumference measures 38 inches (96.5 cm) and his biceps and waist sizes are 13.5 inches (34 cm) and 32 inches (81 cm) respectively.
