| Muna | |
|---|---|
| Born | Munachi Gail Teresa Abii Nwankwo November 5, 1987 Port Harcourt, Rivers State Nigeria |
| Occupation | Rap/Hip Hop recording artiste, Songwriter, TV Presenter, Model |
| Years active | 2005–present |
| Height | 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m) |
| Title | Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria (MBGN) 2007 |
Munachi Abii (born Munachi Gail Teresa Abii Nwankwo, November 5, 1987) is a Nigerian rap / hip-hop artiste, songwriter, former beauty queen, television presenter and model who performs under the name Muna.[1]
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Born and raised in Port Harcourt, Owerri-native Muna was encouraged by her family to pursue her passion for music and arts. After obtaining her O'Level qualifications from Federal Government Girls College Abuloma, she studied International relations and Diplomacy at the Benson Idahosa University.[2] She has since graduated, and served as a youth corper in Rivers State.
During her second year at University in 2007, Muna won the Most Beautiful Girl in Nigeria pageant.[3] Her projects as reigning queen were polio and Sickle cell awareness, [4] and she represented Nigeria at Miss World in China later that year.[5] In 2009, Muna worked with MBGN 2000 winner Matilda Kerry on a project to raise awareness on cervical cancer.[6]
Prior to winning MBGN, Muna had performed as part of Port Harcourt-based rap group The Specimen A,[7] and collaborated with Terry da Rapman on the critically acclaimed My PH Girl. Contrary to popular believe, Muna did not start her music career with rap group Ijaw Boyz, although she did perform with them as a guest artiste.[8] As a solo artist, she performed as Babyrella before changing her stage name to Muna.[6] As a songwriter, she has written songs for artistes such as J Martins and Waje, and has also appeared in several music videos, most notably in P Square's "Ifunanya".[8]
In June 2010, after years of collaborating with various artistes, Muna signed a multi-year management contract with Ayo Shonaiya's RMG company[9] and is currently recording songs in Nigeria, Europe and America for the album The Goddess, The Hustler to be released in the spring of 2011,[10][11] which will include the singles I Feel Real, and Killer Queen.[12][13]. Muna continues to collaborate with other hip hop artistes; in early 2011, she wrote the lyrics and featured on Waje's hit single So Inspired[14] and also appeared in rapper Suspect's video for I No Send You[15].
In 2011, Muna was chosen as one of the rappers (female) to feature and represent Nigeria on the globally televised BET Cypher[16] for the BET Awards.
In 2011, Muna signed an endorsement deal with Unilever as a model for Lux and currently features in commercials for the brand, following in the footsteps of Patti Boulaye and Genevieve Nnaji. [17]
In April 2011, after shooting the video for her feature on Michael Word's Pop Sugar[18], she co-presented the television series Malta Guinness Street Dance Africa.