Africa is the home of many beautiful voices. While many of these voices are involved in pop music or hip-hop, some sing in the name of the Lord. One of them is Sonnie Badu. Check out our Sonnie Badu biography and find out more about this wonderful singer, producer, preacher, author and an overall talented person.
Early years
Sonnie Badu was born on November 9 (year of birth unknown) in the United Kingdom in a family of Julia Agyemang (mother) and Agyeman Prempeh (father). The family soon moved to Accra, Ghana, as Sonnie recalled that his early years were spent there.
Despite being raised in a Christian family that worshipped God (Sonnie’s father was a pastor), Sonnie did not take faith too seriously while he was in school. Instead, he was actually focused on football. Sonnie was indeed quite good at playing football and even showed promise of becoming a professional player, but fate had other plans for him.
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When he was 18 years old, Sonnie became seriously ill. Nobody could figure out what happened to him, and the boy was fading by the minute. When he thought that there was nothing else to hope for, Sonnie turned to God and promised to dedicate his life to worshipping Him if only the Lord let him live.
God heard his prayers and made the disease go away. This was the moment when Sonnie made a decision to become a minister. However, this was not as simple as it might have seemed.
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In an interview with YNaija, Sonnie admitted that life was not easy for him for quite some time. He shared that he used to work at Tesco’s, McDonald’s, Dixon’s, Boots and Jones Bootmaker before the start of his career. He cleaned universities while his peers got to study there. At one point, Sonnie was homeless and had only one suit to wear to church, but that did not diminish his faith in God. He believed and waited for his moment. And the Lord delivered.
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Career
On December 1, 2007, Sonnie Badu released his first gospel album called Lost in Glory. That day signified the start of his career as a worship leader and a renowned gospel artist. For his golden voice and ability to move his audience, Sonnie has been dubbed as The Worshipper. He is also known as the General or the Apostle of Worship.
Since 2008, he has been hosting Africa Worships with Sonnie Badu, a charity concert that raises awareness of the pressing issues in Africa. For instance, the 2008 concert was dedicated to victims of violence in Kenya. In addition to this, Sonnie also tours the world with his gospel program, appearing in major cities in Europe, North America and Africa.
This year, Sonnie’s career has surpassed a ten-year mark. During this decade, he released three critically acclaimed albums, sang with numerous gospel artists, received an honorary degree from the CICA International University & Seminary (Doctorate of Divinity), became a UN Ambassador of Sacred Music, earned the key to the city of Brooklyn and did so much more.
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During his career, Sonnie has managed to score many awards for being the best gospel artist or for having the best gospel song/album. We would be here all day, if we were to recount them all. His most recent win is the 2017 National Gospel Music Award for Best African Gospel of the Year.
Apart from being a great singer, Sonnie is also a bestselling author and even a fashion designer. He has several popular books to his name, including the five-book Worship Guide series and The Ultimate Guide to Praise and Worship. His clothing lines are called The Worshipper’s Garment and Just Badu.
What is even more impressive is that Sonnie is a CEO of quite a few companies. For instance, he is in charge of The Word and Worship Radio, iWorship Magazine, Dizney Daycare, Badu Homes, Eagle Eye Football Agency, Four24 Records, Private Jet Consulting and many others.
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According to Sonnie’s website, he is currently pursuing a Master’s degree and a PhD in Religion and Fine Art at the same time under supervision of Dr Ron Kenoly.
You can find Sonnie on Instagram and Twitter (@sonniebaduuk), Facebook (@SonnieBaduPage), his website (sonniebadu.com), or even on YouTube (Official Sonnie Badu TV). He is a frequent user of the first two platforms, so follow him there to get a peek at his busy life.
Philanthropy
Among his many endeavours, Sonnie is also a philanthropist. At first, he was merely participating in charity concerts or going on charity tours. However, he soon realised that it was not enough and opened his own foundation that he named after himself. The Badu Foundation’s goal is to provide orphans and other vulnerable groups with quality education, support and care.
Speaking of orphanages, Sonnie Badu is the owner and ambassador of several homes for children. In addition to Thy Dwelling Place, an orphanage Badu owned for quite a while, he has recently added the Chosen Children Centre in Darkuman, Accra, Ghana.
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Sonnie also endorses The Hope Orphanage, Cape Coast Ghana. He helps the home raise necessary funds, as well as makes frequent visits to see the children and make sure that they are treated right.
Sonnie Badu married life
One of the things Sonnie Badu is known for is being head over heels in love with his wife. He married Ann-Marie Davis (born March 24) on August 23, 2014 in London, United Kingdom. The Sonnie Badu wedding was a very wonderful occasion attended by many. Since then, he has never ceased to shower her with love and compliments. On Annie’s birthday in 2015, Sonnie even bought her a Porsche!
Sonnie Badu wife made him even happier when she gave birth to their little daughter Imani on July 19, 2015. That said, the couple is also raising a daughter named Shadine (born December 7, 2002) and Annie’s son from a previous relationship.
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The eldest Sonnie Badu daughter is already 15 years old, and she seems to be having the best life imaginable. For instance, she celebrated her 13th birthday in Paris. The younger Sonnie Badu's daughter is still being kept away from the media, so all of her photos feature her facing away from the camera. As for Sonnie’s stepson, he is, of course, a part of Sonnie Badu family, but he does not appear in family pictures often.
Sonnie and Annie have been together for over three years now. They celebrated their three-year anniversary this August along with Sonnie Badu parents, who had their 40-year anniversary on the same day.
Ann-Marie does not appear often in the public eye. Even if she has any social media accounts, she keeps them private. Nevertheless, you can see her in many of Sonnie’s posts and even hear her beautiful voice in one of Sonnie’s tracks called Still You Reign. We definitely recommend you to check it out, as it is truly magical.
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As Sonnie is a very busy man, he has to fly between continents almost daily. With his home being in the UK, his office in Atlanta, Georgia and his heart’s home in Ghana, he cannot help but miss his family. He often apologises to all of them for not being there, but they seem to be very understanding about it, as they always wait for him with open arms.
As you can see, Sonnie Badu is a very fascinating person. During his thirty-odd years of life, he has managed to achieve more than some people manage to do in their whole lives. We certainly hope to hear more from him soon, and we wish him and his family all the best!
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Source: Legit.ng
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