Ammara Brown

Click here for list of Ammara Brown Albums and Songs

Background

Ammara Nury Brown was born on September 6, 1988, to Andy Brown and Soraya Khan in Harare, Zimbabwe. She is the second born of her father's 10 children and first between her mom and dad.^[3] Her parents divorced in 1994, after which she moved with her mother to the USA at age 10 for four years. She studied at Alameda High School between 2002 and 2003.^[4] On her return to Zimbabwe she studied at Westridge High School ^[4] where she completed her high schooling.

Career

1988 - 2005

Ammara was thrust into the music field as early as 3 years old.^[5] Her first taste of fame came in the form of an Olivine cooking oil TV commercial in 1997,^[6] where Oliver Mtukudzi would sing the jiggle for the advert that would be remembered many years later.^[7] At age 9, Brown learnt how to play the mbira^[8] (a traditional musical instrument), and has experience in playing the piano as well.^[5]

At age 13, she was a member of the Martin Luther King Choir. She later went on to produce her first demo song which she gave to her parents. Her father reportedly broke down in tears when he received the demo song.^[1] She was later allowed to join her father's musical band, The Storm whilst only 15.^[1]

In 2004, Ammara won the regional Music Crossroads, and later went on to study music at College of Performing Arts (COPA) and attained honors with distinctions.^[6]

Early Music

Being the daughter of a Zimbabwean music legend, Ammara is sometimes compared to the late great Andy Brown, even though she prefers to sing a fusion of Afro/Pop music.^[6] She has performed backing vocals to her father's band, The Storm, and has made her own performances with various artists.

Brown first signed up for Gallo Records^[5] (later renamed to Zimbabwe Music Corporation),^[9] which was a record label that her father was also signed up to.^[10]

2006 then onwards

Ammara made it to the top 10 of Idols East and Southern Africa in 2008, being one of 5 Zimbabweans and was eventually eliminated, taking 5th position.^[6] In 2010, she performed at the FIFA soccer World Cup in South Africa alongside Flabba from Skwatta Kamp.^[1] She has also performed before Malawian presidents Bingu Wa Mutharika and Joyce Banda.^[11]

Ammara has performed on the same stage with acts such as Mi Casa at the Harare International Festival of the Arts (HIFA), Skwata Kamp,^[11] P-Squared,^[12] Winky D and Tehn Diamond.

During the 2013 edition of the Lion Lager Beer Festival attended by Nigerian singer, D'banj, Ammara made a surprise appearance on stage and twerked for D'banj.^[13]

In June 2014, she caused a stir following the release of her album cover which accompanied her single titled Crucify Me. The album cover depicted a creature like a woman crucified on a cross and a head of a crow or an eagle on a cross.^[14] This garnered criticism from religious fanatics who argued that she was mimicking the crucifixion of Jesus. Ammara argued that the song together with the album cover was all about a woman cheating on a man without any religious connotations.^[14]

Personal life

Brown states that she has witnessed abuse,^[15] while other sources state that she was the subject of abuse.^[2] She is a single mother, having had a son, Khameel, with a dancer of Angolan origin and now just refers to him as her "baby daddy".^[5]

Barely two weeks after her father's death she caused a stir by announcing that the house that belonged to her late parents must be sold as per their wishes.^[16]

She is also alleged to have had an affair with Jah Prayzah, with whom she had a musical collaboration - Kure Kure. She denied the allegations, stating that they were just friends. She emphasized that she would never wreck Jah Prayzah's marriage.^[17]

In June 2014, Brown confirmed that she was in love with Roki, a controversial Urban Grooves musician. It was reported that, the two were planning to get married.^[18] It was however reported that Ammara turned down Roki's proposal, although she did not dispell rumours that the two were having a relationship.^[19] In January 2015, Ammara announced that the two were just friends.^[20] The details of their break up however remained sketchy.

Booking Contacts

Don Khabana
OCM Management
Tel: +2710 271 1749
Cell: +2781 760 2728
Email: don@ocmafrica.com

Pictures

Videos

References