Ntjam Rosie

Ntjam Rosie was born in the south of Cameroon and moved to Maastricht in The Netherlands at the age of 9. As a young girl she came in contact with music through church music and traditional Cameroon storytelling (which incorporates singing and music). Soon she developed a big passion for the arts, whether it´s film, music or paintings. When she was 14 years old Ntjamrosie started to write in Dutch. Later on she translated her poems and started to compose melodies on them. At that time... Meer »

Ntjam Rosie was born in the south of Cameroon and moved to Maastricht in The Netherlands at the age of 9. As a young girl she came in contact with music through church music and traditional Cameroon storytelling (which incorporates singing and music). Soon she developed a big passion for the arts, whether it´s film, music or paintings. When she was 14 years old Ntjamrosie started to write in Dutch. Later on she translated her poems and started to compose melodies on them. At that time she was influenced by Soul music and R&B and was singing with her girlfriends for fun. She took a few singing lessons but she never aspired to become a professional singer.

After high school she followed ´Social studies´ in Rotterdam because she felt she owed it to her family to get a good education. She quit after six months and that descicion forced her to think about what she really wanted to do in life. After a friend gave her a helpfull tip she enlisted for the Rotterdam Conservatory. Currently she is in the 2nd year of World Music Department where she majors in Singing. It is a very challenging study which inspires her to think about her music and keep an open mind. Studying bossa nova´s, bolero´s, jazz standards and so on helps her developing her writing skills and Ntjamrosie discovered that composing music is one of her biggest passions in life. She writes her lyrics in English, French and Bulu (the native dialect of the area where her tribe, the Yengap people, originally come from in Cameroon).

Her music is sometimes credited as R&B or Pop but her music can be best described as a combination of Worldmusic, Jazz, R&B, Soul, Latin & Pop. Her West African roots mixed with these different influences is something really special. She first and foremost wants to touch people with her music, you don´t always have to understand the lyrics to be moved by music. "A hitrecord would be nice but its not a main goal in life" Ntjamrosie said. For instance the ode to her grandmother "Bia Yon" is sung in traditional Bulu, but the heart felt passion can burst through any language barrier.

At the moment Ntjamrosie can be heard on the ´the Mighty 8´ cd, a project from the Dutch National Pop Institute which focusses on promoting new talent. Currently she wants to finish her studies and play and perform songs. She´s also recording songs for her debut album with friends Erik Ritfeld (keys) and Nelson & Djosa in the production area. Be on the lookout for her first official single Patience, produced by fellow Appletree artists Nelson & Djosa, from her forthcoming album on Appletree Records. « Minder