Sade

Sade was born in Nigeria in 1959 as Helen Folasade, the daughter of a Nigerian father and a British mother. When her parents divorced, Sade moved to London with her mother. After school she worked as a fashion designer and model while performing with the jazz-funk band, Pride.

By early 1984, she was the lead singer and songwriter for the group which took her name. Sade's soulful 1984 debut single, Your Love Is King, reached the Top 10 in the UK and Europe, and propelled her first album, Diamond Life, to the top of the charts in Britain and America. 

A collection of sophisticated jazz-pop, it was one of the most successful debuts ever by a female artist - spending over 80 weeks on the Billboard album charts - and made her one of the richest women on the UK pop scene (and also won her a Grammy for Best New Artist). 

Sade toured America, Europe, and Asia and performed at the Live Aid benefit. She then retreated to Spain and withdrew from the media spotlight, until returning to recording in 1988, with Stronger Than Pride, another R&B hit, followed by another huge world tour.

She retired again, this time to London, where she turned her house into a recording studio. Her 1992 album (Love Deluxe) contained the hit, No Ordinary Love, which was featured on the Indecent Proposal soundtrack. Yet another tour followed.

In 1997 the singer was arrested in Jamaica following a traffic dispute with local police and fled the country, threatened with arrest if she ever returns. She followed up with another smash hit, Lovers Rock in 2000, and recorded Lovers Live in 2002.