Nya Jade

"Female troubadour worth keeping your eyes and ears on." - USA Today 

"Her cool singing voice recalls Sade." - LA Times 

"Soulful emotional music." NPR 

 "Buzz-worthy!" MTV.com

"Superb Songstress!" VH1

 

Nya Jade (née Ama Ofosua) is a Ghanaian-born singer-songwriter based in San Francisco, California. Her debut album My Denial won critical favor for its refreshing blend of rock, soul, and pop elements, and immediately landed on VH1's Top 20 Albums list. With a resumé that includes performances with such world-class acts as Maroon 5, the Donnas, Evanescence, Ben Kweller, and an opening slot for the Dave Matthews Band, Nya has wowed audiences with her dynamic live sets. In an LA Times cover story following My Denial’s release, Ann Powers said of Nya, “[she’s] in the running as the latest voice of multicultural bohemian self-empowerment . . . and her cool singing voice recalls Sade.” 

Nya has recorded with Grammy Award-winning producer Jack Douglas (Aerosmith, John Lennon) as well as Nashville-based producer (and Grammy Award-winning engineer), ToneDef (Green Day, Santana, Black Eyed Peas, Outkast). She has also been a guest on NPR’s Sound Check with John Schaefer, appeared at VH1's San Francisco Save The Music function with British soul singer Joss Stone, and was once the finish line entertainment for the Nike Women's Marathon, an event with 20,000 participants. After an appearance on NPR’s Sound Check, host John Schaefer called Nya's album, "Soulful emotional music!" 

Nya's follow-up album, The Road to Adam, released in 2008, is a collection of upbeat, horn infused tracks, lush strings and slow burning love songs. Nya's gift for freely traversing artistic boundaries was partially inspired by her transient youth. Her doctor father traveled frequently for his work with UNAIDS, the Joint United Nations program on HIV/AIDS, and as a result, Nya's family lived in several locales like The Bahamas, Puerto Rico Nigeria and South Africa. Her childhood in the Caribbean exposed her to a diverse range of music, from calypso and reggae to salsa and classic R&B. "My doors were always open," she recalls, "and a whole bunch of different influences came in to expand my musical palette."  

Nya's 2015 release, LOVEDAY is 4-track EP of vibrant songs rooted in Nashville authenticity, and infused with the soul-pop textures that Nya lives and breathes – giving it a sound and energy that is all her own. For this project, she called her longtime producer ToneDef. Together, they selected the strongest four tracks, and when the time came to record, ToneDef enlisted a prominent cast of Nashville session musicians, including several who have toured and recorded with country music titans Tim McGraw and Keith Urban. "I couldn't believe my luck," says Nya of the process. "I was blown away. I feel like they understood me implicitly."
 

Whether performing pop, rock, country or soul, Nya is happy when sharing her love of music with the world. 

Nya has a B.A. in Economics and an M.A. in Sociology from Stanford University. When she's not writing or playing her guitar, you can find Nya spending time with family and friends or reading. Nya lives in Northern California with her family.