10 World Famous Celebrities You Never Knew Were Nigerians

The celebrities in this list were either born in Nigeria and raised abroad, or were born and reared outside the country but have one or both Nigerian parents. Others have used DNA tests to determine their ancestors.

1. Hakeem Kae-Kazim

Hakeem Kae-Kazim is a British-Nigerian actor from Ogun State, Nigeria. He was born in Lagos, Nigeria. He's appeared in films including 'Hotel Rwandan,' 'X-Men Origins: Wolverine,' 'Pirates of the Caribbean,' 'At World's End,' and a number of TV shows like 24, and Criminal Minds.' In addition, he has appeared in Nollywood films such as "Last Flight To Abuja," "Black November," and "Half Of A Yellow Sun." Kae-Kazim has been named a global ambassador for Africa 2.0, a civil society organization that provides a platform for rising and experienced African leaders to accelerate the continent's change.

2. Jacob Taio Cruz

Jacob Taio Cruz, better known as Taio Cruz, is an English singer who was born in London. At a young age, the British-Nigerian singer, rapper, record producer, and songwriter began his musical career. He possessed a natural ability and inclination for creating music, with a superb singing voice and the ability to learn to play the piano by ear. His father is from Nigeria, and his mother is from Brazil. Cruz acquired a publishing contract when he was 19 years old and has won numerous accolades since then.

BRIT Awards, Billboard Music Awards, ASCAP Awards, and American Music Awards are among them.

3. Wale

Olubowale Victor Akintimehin (aka Ralph Folarin), better known by his stage name 'Wale,' is an American-Nigerian rapper, singer, and songwriter who was born on September 21, 1984 in Northwest, Washington, D.C. His parents were both Yoruba people from southwestern Nigeria, and they immigrated to the United States from Austria in 1979. When his song "Dig Dug (Shake It)" became popular in his hometown in 2006, he shot to fame. Currently signed to Maybach Music Group, which was created by Rick Ross, the legendary American rapper. He's worked with big names like Usher, Rick Ross, Meek Mill, Olamide, Kanye West, and Wizkid, among others, both at home and abroad. Wale, the Maybach Music superstar, was the last person to pay him a visit.

4. John Boyega

Boyega was born in Peckham, London, England, on March 17, 1992, to British-Nigerian parents Abigail (née Aboderin), a social worker, and Samson Adegboyega, a Pentecostal minister. His first acting part was as a leopard in a performance at his elementary school, which is rather amusing. He has appeared in a number of major films, including Star Wars: The Last Jedi, Half of a Yellow Sun, Pacific Rim: Uprising, and Star Wars: The Force Awakens, among others.

5. Chiwetel Ejiofor

Ejiofor was born in Forest Gate, London, to Nigerian parents of Igbo origin from the upper-middle class. Arinze, his father, was a doctor, and Obiajulu, his mother, was a pharmacist. Zain Asher, a CNN correspondent, is his younger sister, as previously indicated. Ejiofor began by saying

At his junior high school, Dulwich Prep London (then known as 'Dulwich College Preparatory School'), he acted in school plays and played the gravedigger in William Shakespeare's Hamlet. He continued acting at Dulwich College, where he graduated, and joined the National Youth Theatre.

The Nigerian-born English actor, writer, and director is most known for his role as Solomon Northup in the 2013 film 12 Years a Slave, for which he got Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations as well as a BAFTA Award for Best Actor. He's also renowned for his roles in Dirty Pretty Things (2002), Serenity (2005), Lola in Kinky Boots (2005), Luke in Children of Men (2006), Dr. Adrian Helmsley in 2012 (2009), and Dr. Vincent Kapoor in The Martian (2009). (2015). I could go on and on about his biography, but I won't be able to finish in an hour; he is truly a man of honor.

6. Forest Whitaker

Forest Whitaker is an actor, director, and producer from the United States. His ancestors originated in Nigeria. His father's ancestors may be traced back to the Nigerian Igbo tribe. His ancestors originated in the village of Nkwere.

Forest Whitaker is best recognized for his portrayal in the 2006 film The Last King of Scotland as Ugandan dictator Idi Amin. Bird, The Crying Game, Platoon, Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai, The Great Debaters, The Butler, and Arrival are just a few of his masterpieces.

7. Zain Ejiofor Asher

Zain Ejiofor Asher is the younger sister of award-winning Hollywood actor Chiwetel Ejiofor and a British Nigerian news anchor with CNN International in New York City. Zain was born and raised in Balham, London Borough of Wandsworth, England, when her Nigerian parents immigrated during the famous Biafra war. She is the host of CNN International's CNN Newsroom.

Asher was previously a co-anchor on CNN America's CNN Newsroom. Asher began working for CNN as a business correspondent in New York City in 2013. She had a monthly piece in Money Magazine in addition to her financial reporting for CNN.

8. Uzo Aduba

Uzoamaka Nwanneka "Uzo" Aduba is an actress from the United States. She was born in Boston, Massachusetts, on February 10, 1981, to Nigerian parents. Uzo is best recognized for her Emmy Award-winning role as Suzanne "Crazy Eyes" Warren in the Netflix original series Orange Is the New Black.

9. Jidenna

Jidenna Theodore Mobisson, better known by her stage name Jidenna, is a Wondaland Records-signed Nigerian-American singer.

His father is an Igbo Nigerian. Jidenna spent part of her childhood in Nigeria, where her father was a computer science professor at Enugu State University. Jidenna is an Igbo name that means "embrace the father."

10. Carmen Elizabeth Ejogo

Carmen Elizabeth Ejogo was born to a Nigerian father and a Scottish mother in Kensington, London, England. In the early 1990s, she began her television career in the United Kingdom, when she hosted the children's show Saturday Disney (1990). She went on to have a successful acting career in the United States. She has also worked in the music industry since the 1990s, collaborating with a number of performers. She penned and sung lead vocals on English drum and bass DJ Alex Reece's tune "Candles."