Deborah Oluwaseyi Joshua, popularly known as Sheyi Shay was born 21st December, in the United Kingdom, the last of four children. Sheyi Shay grew up around music, she first started listening to her mother’s collection which included Onyeka Onwenu, Salawa Abeni, Fela Anikulapo Kuti, King Sunny Ade, her mother was a chorister with a wide range of Nigerian music, her brother was both a Radio and a Club DJ, her sister was a chorister like their mother and used to write songs as well. Music was all about her that she began performing at age six, and then joined the London Community Gospel Choir (LCGC), which gave her opportunity of performing in cities around the world including a 4 weeks tour of Japan every Christmas, at the age of 14 she was the youngest member of the choir. She had her primary education in Nigeria, attended Queens College Yaba for a while, but completed her studies in the United Kingdom, she also attended the University of East London for her University education and earned a degree in Business Management
Sheyi Shay during her teenage years, decided she wanted to do music all her life, but her mother opposed it, as she wanted her to earn a degree in medicine or some other great course, this caused friction between her mother and her as a teen. Eventually, Sheyi graduated from a university to her mother’s delight. Although Sheyi obliged her mother by going to the University, her love for music only grew stronger. Upon graduation, Sheyi started to network within the music industry in the UK and soon she was opportune to sign under a record company called No Apology, it was an affiliate of George Martin Music, former producer of The Beatles, but the project didn’t yield so much success as they imagined it would. She later joined a girl group called From Above, UK Based and nurtured by Martin Knowles, Beyonce’s father. The group were under his management for four years and in those four years, sheyi trained, toured with Beyonce and opened shows for her in the UK. The group had their own reality TV Show called “Breaking from Above” which aired on MTV in 166 countries. The group split amicably in 2012. Since her return to Nigeria, Sheyi Shay has released three successful singles, Loving you, Irawo, and No lele.
