Cynthia Morgan
Cynthia Ikponmwenosa Morgan (born 23 September 1991),[2] popularly known by her previous stage name Cynthia Morgan, now Madrina,[3] is a Nigerian born songwriter and singer. Her music is a fusion of pop, hip hop, dancehall and rap. She shot into limelight following the release of two singles titled "Don't Break My Heart" and "Lead Me On", which received massive airplay and positive reviews from critics. Cynthia made her acting debut in 2016 Nollywood movie "The Wrong Number" Directed by Saint Joseph ovensehi, and Ay's comedy movie A trip to Jamaica.[4]
Cynthia Morgan | |
---|---|
Birth name | Cynthia Ikponmwenosa Morgan |
Born | Benin City, Edo, Nigeria[1] | 23 September 1991
Genres | Pop, hip hop, dancehall, rap |
Occupation(s) | Singer, song-writer |
Instrument(s) | Vocals |
Years active | 2007–present |
Labels | TCMC |
Early life and education
Cynthia Morgan was born in Benin City, Edo State where she completed her basic formal education.[5] At the age of 3, she was already a backup singer for her mother's musical band.[5]
Reports about Cynthia Morgan’s childhood say her father abandoned them when her mum was just 20-years-old and pregnant. She was then raised by a single mother who is now a top gospel artist in Benin City. That’s probably why Morgan fell in love with music at the early years of her life.
If Morgan truly started performing at age 3, it’s not surprising that she started making her own songs at the age of 7. Those experiences equipped her to lead her school choir in secondary school.
10 years later, Cynthia Morgan was set to record her first debut single. She featured Pype in the debut titled Dutty Stepping. Thereafter, she moved to Lagos to give her music career a push. She subsequently signed a recording deal with Northside Entertainment Inc.
With that deal, she proved her worth soonest. Her Don’t Break My Heart and Lead Me Onsingles received much attention which essentially, catapulted her to the limelight.
Going into music professionally at the age of 16 and releasing her first single at the age of 17, Cynthia Morgan showed she has a keen ability, enabling her to blend these genres of music together for something unique.
While “Don’t Break My Heart” flows with an upbeat Afro Pop synchronized to represent an ideal song suitable for wedding vow moments, “Lead Me On” exhibits a reggae-dancehall love song beautified with Morgan’s patois accent.
The singles continued to earn Cynthia heartwarming reviews and “Lead Me On” was eventually, nominated for “Best Reggae-Dancehall Single” at The Headies of 2014.[6]
Career
At the age of 7, Cynthia Morgan started composing songs and at the age of 17 she recorded her debut single which featured General Pype "Dutty Stepping". In 2008, she moved to Lagos to further her music career.[7][8] she calls herself "Killa Marshal" which is her Ego on stage.[5]
On 22 August 2013, Cynthia Morgan signed a recording contract with Northside Entertainment Inc. owned by Jude 'Engees' Okoye.[9] Few months later, she released two chart-topping singles "Don't Break My Heart" and "Lead Me On" which got positive reviews from fans; the latter went on to be nominated for "Best Reggae/Dancehall Single" at The Headies 2014[10]
On 23 May 2020, Cynthia Morgan who has not released songs for years in an Instagram Live session revealed that she lost her stage name, “Cynthia Morgan”, her VEVO account, royalties, Instagram account and other things due to the contract she signed with Jude Okoye. She revealed that she became depressed after her fallout with Jude Okoye of Northside Entertainment but did not informed public about her issues.[11] Fans went on to donate to a GoFundMe account set up for her [12] and even Afrobeats Superstar Davido weighed in and asked her to call him up for a collaboration.[13]
Discography
Selected singles
- "Dutty Stepping" (2009)
- "Jhybo ft Cynthia Morgan-E jo lefero (2009)
- "Right Move" (2011)
- "High High High" & "Ojoro" (2012)
- "Don't Break My Heart" & "Lead Me On" (2014)
- "I'm Taken" (2014)
- "Popori" (2014)
- "German Juice" (2015)
- "Come and Do" (2015)
- "Simati Niya" (2015)
- "Baby Mama (2015)
- "Olowo" (2016)
- "Bubble bup" (2016)
- "In Love" (2017)
- "No camera's" (2017)
- "Summer Time" (2017)
- "Hustle" (2020)
Madrina
- "Billion Dollar Woman" (2018)
- "Lion" (2018)
As featured artist
- "Ejo le fe ro" – Jhybo ft. Cynthia Morgan (2010)
- "Bruce Lee" – TK Tycoon ft. Cynthia Morgan & Tipsy (2011)
- "Gbogbo Hustling" – Tha Suspect ft. Zee, Bigmaxx, Cynthia Morgan & Tesh Carter (2012)
- "Faaji" – Tony Ross ft. Cynthia Morgan & A-Q (2013)
- "Money" – KKTBM ft. Yung6ix, Cynthia Morgan, Tesh Carter & SD (2014)
- Give Dem" – DJ Prince ft. Dammy Krane, Mac 2 & Cynthia Morgan (2014)
- "Shoki [Female Version]" – Lil Kesh ft. Chidinma, Eva & Cynthia Morgan (2014)
- "Jamo" – Illbliss ft. Cynthia Morgan (2014)
- "Number 1" – Chopstix ft. Cynthia Morgan, Shaydee & Yung L (2015)
- "Go Gaga (Remix)" – MC Galaxy ft. Stone Bwoy, Cynthia Morgan (2015)
- "Telephone Lies" – Spydaman ft. Cynthia Morgan (2015)
- "Come Over" – Splash ft Cynthia Morgan (2016)
- "Twerk It" – Tony Ross ft. Cynthia Morgan, Phyno (2016)
- "Fine n Clean" – Jesse Jagz ft. Cynthia Morgan (2017)
- "Mosa" – Tony Ross ft Cynthia Morgan (2018)
Awards and nominations
Year | Award ceremony | Prize | Result |
---|---|---|---|
2014 | 2014 Nigeria Entertainment Awards | Best Female Artist of The Year | Nominated[14] |
Best Rap Act of The Year | Nominated[14] | ||
South South Music Awards | Best New Artist | Won[15] | |
The Headies 2014 | Best Reggae/Dancehall Single | Nominated[16] | |
Ben TV Awards | Best Newcomer | Nominated[17] | |
Best Hip-Hop Female Artist | Nominated[17] | ||
Best Reggae/Dancehall Artist | Nominated[17] | ||
ELOY Awards | Best Female Artist | Nominated[18] | |
2015 | Music Artist of The Year | Won[19] | |
2015 Nigeria Entertainment Awards | Female Artist of The Year | Nominated | |
South South Music Awards | Best Reggae/Dancehall | Won[20] | |
2016 | The Headies 2015 | Best Reggae Single | Won[21] |
Next Rated | Nominated[22] |
See also
References
- "Cynthia Morgan (Marshal Morgan)". ExclusivelyNaija. Archived from the original on 28 April 2015. Retrieved 3 May 2015.
- Cynthia Morgan
- "Cynthia Morgan Rebrands, Changes Stage Name To 'Madrina'; Releases New Music Video 'Billion Dollar Woman' – INFORMATION NIGERIA". INFORMATION NIGERIA. 8 May 2018. Retrieved 25 July 2018.
- "Cynthia Morgan Makes Comeback with 'Lead me on'". Retrieved 20 October 2014.
- "Cynthia Morgan Biography (Marshal Morgan)". Archived from the original on 17 August 2016. Retrieved 14 January 2015.
- "Cynthia Morgan – 5 Fast Facts You Need To Know About Madrina". BuzzNigeria - Famous People, Celebrity Bios, Updates and Trendy News. 25 June 2018. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
- "Artist Profile: Cynthia Morgan". musicstreet.com. Archived from the original on 16 September 2013. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
- Cynthia Morgan ft Pype – Dutty Wine
- Jude ‘Engees’ Okoye signs Cynthia Morgan to Northside music
- "Cynthia Morgan – Don't Break My Heart + Lead Me On". notJustOk. 11 November 2013. Retrieved 23 March 2014.
- Olowolagba, Fikayo (2020). "Cynthia Morgan reveals battle with depression, what Jude Okoye did to her". Daily Post.
- Idowu, Ronke. "Fans Push For Cynthia Morgan's Comeback, Open GoFundMe Account". Channels TV. Retrieved 16 June 2020.
- Ikeji, Linda. "Davido reaches out to Cynthia Morgan, offers to help her". Linda Ikeji's Blog. Retrieved 16 June 2020.
- "Cynthia Morgan Gets Two NEA Nominations". Stella Dimokokorkus. 4 June 2014. Retrieved 2 February 2016.
- "Yoyo Wins Award at the Prestigeous [sic] South South Music Awards (SSMA) 2014". OlodoNation. 18 December 2014. Retrieved 2 February 2016.
- DonBoye (15 December 2014). "The Headies 2014 – Winners List". NotJustOk. Retrieved 2 February 2016.
- "Music Awards". Ben TV. Archived from the original on 17 January 2016. Retrieved 2 February 2016.
- Adiele, Chinedu (20 October 2014). "Seyi Shay, Toke Makinwa, Mo'Cheddah, DJ Cuppy, Others Nominated". Pulse Nigeria. Retrieved 2 February 2016.
- Aina, Idris (30 November 2015). "ELOY AWARDS 2015: Seyi Shay Beat Yemi Alade, Cynthia Morgan & More To Music Artist Award". Entertainment Rave Magazine. Retrieved 2 February 2016.
- Bankole (10 November 2015). "#SSMA2015: Blackmagic, Cynthia Morgan, Johnny Drille Nominated". 360Nobs. Retrieved 2 February 2016.
- Badmus, Kayode (2 January 2016). "#Headies2015: Cynthia Morgan wins Best Reggae/Dancehall". Nigeria Entertainment Today. Retrieved 2 February 2016.
- Abumere, Princess Irede (2 January 2016). "Reekado Banks beats Lil Kesh, Kiss Daniel, Korede Bello, Cynthia Morgan to win Next Rated Act award". Pulse Nigeria. Retrieved 2 February 2016.