Echoing Carla Bruni’s graceful shift rather than Naomi Campbell’s misguided attempts, Imany stands among the rare supermodels for whom moving from runway to recording studio feels natural. Nadia Mladjao entered the world in 1979 on the Comoros Islands off Africa’s southeast coast and spent her formative years in France, where she first excelled as a high jumper before Ford Models Europe Agency offered her a contract. Years of global travel followed, among them a six-year period based in the United States, after which she settled back in France to chase her long-held dream of a singing career. Drawing from Billie Holiday, Nina Simone, and Tracy Chapman, she took the stage name Imany—Swahili for “hope”—and delivered a fusion of acoustic folk and soulful blues at Parisian nightclubs and jazz bars, culminating in the release of her debut EP, Acoustic Sessions. Tours supporting Ben l’Oncle Soul and Angie Stone across Europe came next, leading to her collaboration with producer Malick N’Diaye (Ayo) on the album The Shape of a Broken Heart, issued to widespread critical praise in 2011.
