Daphne Njie Efundem (born September 20, 1989) known as Daphne, is a Cameroonian singer. She began her career in 2013 and released her first single entitled ''Rastafari'' the following year but gained international recognition in 2017 with her track ''Calée.'' She released an album entitled ''Here to Stay'' in 2016 and a dozen singles.

Life and career

Daphne was born on September 20, 1989 in

Buea Buea is the capital of the Southwest Region (Cameroon), Southwest Region of Cameroon. The city is located in Fako (department), Fako Division, on the eastern slopes of Mount Cameroon, and has a population of about 800.000 inhabitants as of 2 ...

. She grew up in

Douala Douala is the largest city in Cameroon and its economic capital. It is also the capital of Cameroon's Littoral Region (Cameroon), Littoral Region. It was home to Central Africa's largest port, now being replaced by Kribi port. It has the country ...

. She attended elementary school at Government School Bepanda in Douala, secondary school at Queen of the Rosary College Okoyong in

Mamfe Mamfe or Mamfé is a city in and the capital of Manyu, a division of the Southwest Region in Cameroon. It is from the border of Nigeria, on the Manyu River. It has a population of 42,500 (2024 estimates) It is known as a centre for traditi ...

and Inter Comprehensive High School in Buea. She also studied law and psychology at the

University of Buea University of Buea (UB) is found in Molyko, Buea, in the southwest region of Cameroon. It was founded as a university centre in 1985 and became a full-fledged university in 1992, following a government decree that re-organized state universities ...

. In 2014, Daphne released her first single ''Rastafari'' on the Stevens Music Entertainment label, which helped her gain recognition. The same year, she released ''Reflection'', a 4-track maxi single featuring the songs ''Ndolo'', ''Broken'', ''Reflection'' and ''Rastafari''. In 2016, she invited singer Ben Decca for a cover of the track ''Ndolo''. That same year, she was named Best Female Artist from Central Africa at the African Muzik Magazine Awards (AFRIMMA) in the USA. In 2017, she released her hit ''Calée'', which racked up over 10 million views on

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

in just a few months. She collaborated with singers

Mr. Leo Fonyuy Leonard Nsohburinka (born August 31, 1990) is a Cameroonian singer known by his stage name Mr. Leo. He rose to fame after his single "E go beta" a hit aired on most Radio/TV stations in and out of Cameroon. In 2016, he received three aw ...

and Salatiel on the song. The song's success earned her numerous awards, including Song of the Year and Best Female Vocal at the Balafon Music Awards in 2017. In 2017, she embarked on her first African tour, with concerts in

Côte d'Ivoire Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire and officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital city of Yamoussoukro is located in the centre of the country, while its largest city and ...

Benin Benin, officially the Republic of Benin, is a country in West Africa. It was formerly known as Dahomey. It is bordered by Togo to the west, Nigeria to the east, Burkina Faso to the north-west, and Niger to the north-east. The majority of its po ...

Gabon Gabon ( ; ), officially the Gabonese Republic (), is a country on the Atlantic coast of Central Africa, on the equator, bordered by Equatorial Guinea to the northwest, Cameroon to the north, the Republic of the Congo to the east and south, and ...

Togo Togo, officially the Togolese Republic, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Ghana to Ghana–Togo border, the west, Benin to Benin–Togo border, the east and Burkina Faso to Burkina Faso–Togo border, the north. It is one of the le ...

and

Equatorial Guinea Equatorial Guinea, officially the Republic of Equatorial Guinea, is a country on the west coast of Central Africa. It has an area of . Formerly the colony of Spanish Guinea, its post-independence name refers to its location both near the Equ ...

. In 2018, she sang in Andoany on the island of

Nosy Be Nosy Be (; formerly Nossi-bé and Nosse Be, ) is a volcanic island off the northwest coast of Madagascar. Nosy Be is Madagascar's largest and busiest tourist destination. It has an area of , and its population was 109,465 according to the provisio ...

Madagascar Madagascar, officially the Republic of Madagascar, is an island country that includes the island of Madagascar and numerous smaller peripheral islands. Lying off the southeastern coast of Africa, it is the world's List of islands by area, f ...

at the fifth edition of the Sômarôho Festival organized each year by singer Wawa. In 2019, Daphne was crowned queen of the Canal 2'Or edition, winning four awards on her own in the categories Female Artist of the Year, Female Urban Music Artist or Group, Best Digital Performance and Popular Song. She is the first artist in Canal 2'Or history to win so many awards in a single edition. The same year, she was also crowned Best Female Artist at the Balafon Music Awards and winner of the Talk Fashion and Art de la Diaspora Rise Up Gala held in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

in January 2020. In October 2021, she was elected member of the jury for the first season of ''The Voice Kids Afrique Francophone''. In 2020, she featured in Fisherman's Diary where she portrayed the role of Mrs. Anang Joe

Personal life

On July 26, 2023, Daphne gave birth to her daughter, named Afanwi in the United States.

Discography

Singles

* ''Ndolo'' (feat. Ben Decca) (2016) * ''Calée'' (2017) * ''Promets-moi'' (2017) * ''Jusqu'à la Gare'' (2017) * ''My Lover'' (2018) * ''Ne Lâches Pas'' (2018) * ''Doucement'' (2019) * ''Là-bas'' (2021)

Collaboration

* Numerica feat. Daphne - ''No Way'' (2016) * * Salatiel feat. Daphne - ''Comme ça (À nous deux)'' (2018) * Hiro feat. Daphne - ''Number One'' (2018) * Fanicko feat. Daphne - Avec Toi (2019) * * Stanley Enow feat. Daphne - ''Forever'' (2019) * Abz feat. Daphne - ''Ololiyo'' (2020) * Boy Tag feat. Daphne - ''Far Away'' (2020) * Ful feat. Daphne - ''Reviens Moi'' (2020) *

Koffi Olomide Antoine Christophe Agbepa Mumba (born 13 July 1956), known professionally as Koffi Olomidé, is a Congolese singer-songwriter, dancer, producer, and founder of Quartier Latin International. Often referred to as the "King of Ndombolo", he is not ...

feat. Daphne - ''You Got It'' (2020)

Album

* Here to Stay (2016)

EP

* Reflection (2014)

Filmography

(2020) Fisherman's Diary

Balafon Music Awards

* Winner Song of the Year (2017) * Best Female Voice (2017) * Female Artist of the Year (2019)

AFRIMMA

* Best female artist in Central Africa (2016)

Canal 2'Or

* Female artist of the year (2019) * Female urban music artist or group (2019) * Best digital performance (2019) * Laureate Popular song (2019)

References

Living people 1989 births 21st-century Cameroonian women singers Afrobeats musicians {{Africa-musician-stub People from Buea University of Buea alumni