| The story of how Shola Ama was discovered is one of those "too-good-to-be-true" tales that make you shake your head at how wonderful and arbitrary success can be. Five years ago, having bunked off school to visit a boyfriend in prison, Shola was standing on the platform of Hammersmith station in London, singing a Chaka Khan tune to herself, when Kwame Kwaten from D-Influence heard her, recognised a distinctive talent, and quickly invited her to a recording studio.
The result was an acclaimed debut album which yielded three hit singles - You Might Need Somebody, You're The One I Love and Who's Loving My Baby - and won her two MOBO Awards and Best Female Solo Artist at the Brit Awards. Not a bad result for a day's truancy. Now, with the release of her second album, In Return, Shola, all of 20, is ready to cement her reputation as one of the UK's leading vocalists - and she's a little bit bored with the whole Hammersmith legend...
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