Efua Baker (/ˈɛfwə/ EF-wə; born c. 1967 in Ghana)[1] is a British celebrity fitness expert and trainer who also had a music career in the 1990s.
Efua Baker | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Efua Baker |
| Born | c. 1967 Ghana |
| Occupations |
|
| Labels | Virgin |
Career
editIn 1993, Baker, then known as just Efua, released three singles: "Down Is the Drop", "Strawberry Boy", and "Somewhere". "Somewhere" was her biggest hit, reaching the top 50 in the UK,[2] and the top 20 in Australia.[3] "Strawberry Boy" charted on the US Billboard Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles chart.[4] An album, Dream Juice, was released in June 1993 in the US,[1] and in November 1993 in Australia.[5]
Prior to releasing her own music, Efua worked as a model and a dancer, and appeared in a number of music videos for other artists,[6] including Clive Griffin's "The Way We Touch" and "Don't Make Me Wait", Lil Louis's "I Called U", Soul II Soul's "A Dream's a Dream", and one of the two videos filmed for Maxi Priest's "Close to You". In 1996, she appeared in Yazz's music video for "Good Thing Going". In 2019, Baker appeared in the music video for FKA Twigs' "Cellophane".[7]
Baker's best known work as a fitness expert was on the BBC One programme Fat Nation - the Big Challenge in late 2004.
Personal life
editShe is married to music producer and Soul II Soul frontman Jazzie B, and they are parents to actress Jessye Romeo and footballer Mahlon Romeo.[8]
Discography
editAlbums
edit| Album | Detail | Peak chart positions |
|---|---|---|
| AUS [3] | ||
| Dream Juice |
|
140 |
Singles
edit| Year | Single | Peak chart positions | Album | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK [2] |
AUS [3] |
US R&B/ Hip-Hop Bubbling Under [9] | |||
| 1993 | "Down Is the Drop" (European release) | 87 | – | – | Dream Juice |
| "Strawberry Boy" | – | – | 8 | ||
| "Somewhere" | 42 | 16 | – | ||
| 1994 | "Down Is the Drop" (Australian release) | – | 122 | – | |
| "–" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that country. | |||||
References
edit- ^ a b White, Timothy (1993-05-22). "Efua: The Sweet Science of a 'Dream'". Billboard. New York, N.Y.: BPI Communications. Archived from the original on 2015-10-02. Retrieved 2015-10-02.
- ^ a b UK chart peaks:
- "Down Is the Drop": "Chart Histories > Efua". Imgur.com. Archived from the original on 2015-10-01. Retrieved 2015-10-02.
- "Somewhere": "Official Charts Company > Efua". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2019-06-01. N.B. The Official Charts site does not display positions 76–100 between April 1991 and January 1994.
- ^ a b c Australian (ARIA) chart peaks:
- "Somewhere": "australian-charts.com > Efua – Somewhere (song)". Hung Medien. Archived from the original on 2012-10-19. Retrieved 2019-06-01.
- "Down Is the Drop": "Response from ARIA re: chart inquiry, received 17 June 2014". Imgur.com. Archived from the original on 2014-11-29. Retrieved 2015-10-02.
- Dream Juice: "Response from ARIA re: chart inquiry, received 15 July 2015". Imgur.com. Archived from the original on 2015-07-16. Retrieved 2015-10-02.
- ^ "Bubbling Under > Hot R&B Singles – August 14, 1993 (from Billboard magazine)". Imgur.com (original document published by Billboard). Retrieved 2016-12-09.
- ^ "New Release Schedule – Product Available from: 15/11/93 (from The ARIA Report Issue No. 197)". Imgur.com. Retrieved 2016-05-06.
- ^ Wells, Chris (1993-01-30). "Drop Shop". Echoes. Ipswich, Suffolk, UK: East Anglian Daily Times. Archived from the original on 2015-10-02. Retrieved 2015-10-02.
- ^ "FKA twigs – Cellophane". YouTube. Archived from the original on 2021-12-21. Retrieved 2019-06-01. N.B. Efua Baker is listed in the video credits displayed beneath the video.
- ^ "OBE for DJ and producer Jazzie B". BBC. 2008-05-16. Retrieved 2013-12-11.
- ^ "Efua > Chart History". Billboard. Archived from the original on 2019-08-26. Retrieved 2019-08-26.
External links
edit- Efua Baker – official site
- Efua Baker discography at Discogs
- Somewhere on YouTube
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