Efua Baker

{{use dmy dates|date=July 2020|cs1-dates=y}} {{Infobox musical artist | name = Efua Baker | image = | caption = | landscape = | background = solo_singer | birth_name = Efua Baker | birth_date = c. 1967 | birth_place = Ghana | genre = | occupation = {{hlist|Singer|songwriter|fitness expert|personal trainer}} | years_active = | label = Virgin }}

'''Efua Baker''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|ɛ|f|w|ə|}} {{Respell|EF|wə}}; born c. 1967 in Ghana)<ref name=Billboard/> is a British celebrity fitness expert and trainer who also had a music career in the 1990s.

==Career== In 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,<ref name=uk/> and the top 20 in Australia.<ref name=aus/> "Strawberry Boy" charted on the US ''Billboard'' Bubbling Under R&B/Hip-Hop Singles chart.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://i.imgur.com/7xJ6H2K.jpg|title=Bubbling Under > Hot R&B Singles – August 14, 1993 (from ''Billboard'' magazine)|publisher=Imgur.com (original document published by Billboard)|accessdate=2016-12-09}}</ref> An album, ''Dream Juice'', was released in June 1993 in the US,<ref name=Billboard>{{cite magazine|last=White|first=Timothy|date=1993-05-22|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20151002032937/http://i.imgur.com/KSQDJK8.jpg |archivedate=2015-10-02|title=Efua: The Sweet Science of a 'Dream'|url=https://i.imgur.com/KSQDJK8.jpg|magazine=Billboard|location=New York, N.Y.|publisher=BPI Communications|access-date=2015-10-02|url-status=live}}</ref> and in November 1993 in Australia.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://i.imgur.com/KbGcb9s.png|title=New Release Schedule – Product Available from: 15/11/93 (from The ARIA Report Issue No. 197)|publisher=Imgur.com|accessdate=2016-05-06}}</ref>

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,<ref name=echoes>{{cite news|last=Wells|first=Chris|date=1993-01-30|title=Drop Shop|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20151002025043/http://i.imgur.com/OpIFyvg.jpg|url=https://i.imgur.com/OpIFyvg.jpg|archivedate=2015-10-02|newspaper=Echoes|location=Ipswich, Suffolk, UK|publisher=East Anglian Daily Times|access-date=2015-10-02|url-status=live}}</ref> 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 Dreams 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".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YkLjqFpBh84 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211221/YkLjqFpBh84 |archive-date=2021-12-21 |url-status=live|title=FKA twigs – Cellophane|date=24 April 2019 |publisher=YouTube|accessdate=2019-06-01}}{{cbignore}} N.B. Efua Baker is listed in the video credits displayed beneath the video.</ref>

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== She is married to music producer and Soul II Soul frontman Jazzie B, and they are parents to actress Jessye Romeo and footballer Mahlon Romeo.<ref name="bbc info 1">{{cite web|url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/7405241.stm|publisher=BBC|title=OBE for DJ and producer Jazzie B|date=16 May 2008|access-date=11 December 2013}}</ref>

==Discography== ===Albums=== {| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;" |- ! rowspan="2"| Album ! rowspan="2"| Detail ! rowspan="1"| Peak chart positions |- ! width="35"|AUS <ref name=aus/> |- | scope="row"|''Dream Juice'' | * Released: 1993 * Label: Virgin Records | 140 |- |}

===Singles=== {| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;" |- ! rowspan="2"| Year ! rowspan="2"| Single ! colspan="3"| Peak chart positions ! rowspan="2"| Album |- style="font-size:smaller;" ! width="35"| UK <ref name=uk>UK chart peaks: *"Down Is the Drop": {{cite web|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20151001230528/http://i.imgur.com/oR7MFlX.jpg|url=https://i.imgur.com/oR7MFlX.jpg|archivedate=2015-10-01 |title=Chart Histories > Efua|accessdate=2015-10-02|publisher=Imgur.com|url-status=live}} *"Somewhere": {{cite web|url=https://www.officialcharts.com/artist/29026/efua/|title=Official Charts Company > Efua|publisher=Official Charts Company|accessdate=2019-06-01}} N.B. The Official Charts site does not display positions 76–100 between April 1991 and January 1994.</ref> ! width="35"| AUS <ref name=aus>Australian (ARIA) chart peaks: *"Somewhere": {{cite web|title=australian-charts.com > Efua – Somewhere (song)|url=https://australian-charts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=Efua&titel=Somewhere&cat=s|publisher=Hung Medien|accessdate=2019-06-01 |url-status=live|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20121019014043/http://australian-charts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=Efua&titel=Somewhere&cat=s|archivedate=2012-10-19}} *"Down Is the Drop": {{cite web|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20141129020821/http://i.imgur.com/9AQCjII.jpg|url=https://i.imgur.com/9AQCjII.jpg|archivedate=2014-11-29|title=Response from ARIA re: chart inquiry, received 17 June 2014|accessdate=2015-10-02|publisher=Imgur.com|url-status=live}} *''Dream Juice'': {{cite web|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20150716153430/http://i.imgur.com/oyPN1pW.jpg|url=https://i.imgur.com/oyPN1pW.jpg|archivedate=2015-07-16|title=Response from ARIA re: chart inquiry, received 15 July 2015|accessdate=2015-10-02|publisher=Imgur.com|url-status=live}}</ref> ! width="35"| US R&B/ Hip-Hop Bubbling Under <ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.billboard.com/music/efua|title=Efua > Chart History|magazine=Billboard|accessdate=26 August 2019|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20190826121020/https://www.billboard.com/music/efua|archivedate=26 August 2019}}</ref> |- | rowspan="3"| 1993 | align="left"|"Down Is the Drop" (European release) | 87 | – | – | align="left" rowspan="4"| ''Dream Juice'' |- | align="left"|"Strawberry Boy" | – | – | 8 |- | align="left"|"Somewhere" | 42 | 16 | – |- | 1994 | align="left"|"Down Is the Drop" (Australian release) | – | 122 | – |- | colspan="6" style="font-size:8pt"| "–" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that country. |}

==References== {{reflist|2}}

==External links== *{{Official website|https://www.efuabaker.com|Efua Baker}} – official site *{{Discogs artist}} *[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7uvahxS3dPQ ''Somewhere''] on YouTube

{{DEFAULTSORT:Baker, Efua}} Category:Living people Category:Ghanaian emigrants to the United Kingdom Category:Ghanaian women singers Category:British women singers Category:1960s births Category:Year of birth missing (living people)