Destiny Chukunyere M.Q.R. (born 29 August 2002), known mononymously as Destiny, is a Maltese singer. She won the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2015, where she represented Malta with the song "Not My Soul".
Destiny | |
|---|---|
 Destiny in 2019 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Destiny Chukunyere |
| Also known as | Destiny |
| Born | 29 August 2002 Birkirkara, Malta |
| Genres | |
| Occupation |
|
| Instrument | Vocals |
| Years active | 2013–present |
| Website | destiny |
In 2017, she participated in the eleventh series of Britain's Got Talent and finished 6th in the second semi-final and thus was eliminated. She won the second season of the Maltese version of The X Factor and was chosen to represent Malta in the Eurovision Song Contest 2020 in Rotterdam with the song "All of My Love" before the contest was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Instead, Destiny represented Malta in the Eurovision Song Contest 2021, this time with the song "Je me casse", where she finished in 7th place with 255 points.
Early life
editChukunyere was born on 29 August 2002. She lives in Birkirkara and attended a secondary school in Ħamrun.[1] Her father is Igbo Nigerian[2] former footballer Ndubisi Chukunyere, while her mother is Maltese.[3] She has two younger siblings; a sister named Melody and a brother named Isaiah.[4]
Career
editPrior to her participation in the Junior Eurovision, Chukunyere participated in various singing competitions including Festival Kanzunetta Indipendenza 2014 in which she placed third with the song "Festa t'Ilwien"; and won the Asterisks Music Festival, and SanRemo Junior in Italy.[5]
2015–2017: Junior Eurovision Song Contest
editOn 11 July 2015, Chukunyere won the Maltese national final held at the Mediterranean Conference Centre in Valletta. She represented Malta at the Junior Eurovision Song Contest 2015, in Sofia, Bulgaria on 21 November.[6]
Chukunyere won the live national final with the Aretha Franklin song "Think", enabling her to represent Malta; her Junior Eurovision entry called "Not My Soul" was composed by Elton Zarb and written by Muxu with her involvement.[7][8] Chukunyere won the contest with 185 points breaking the previous record score set by María Isabel in 2004.[9]
On 13 December 2015, Chukunyere and her team were awarded the Midalja għall-Qadi tar-Repubblika.[8]
2017–2019: Britain's Got Talent
editIn early 2017, Chukunyere auditioned for series 11 of ITV's Britain's Got Talent singing "Think", by Aretha Franklin, where she was given four yeses. Her audition was aired on 20 May. She has received praise from established music critic Simon Cowell and international renowned tenor Joseph Calleja.[10] After listening and watching her perform, Cowell told to the rest of the judges that they "have been waiting for someone to come out who ... could be a star, and Destiny may be the one."[11] On 27 May, she was announced as one of the qualifiers to the live shows and performed in the second semi-final on 30 May.[12] She placed 6th in the semi-final and thus was eliminated.
| Song | Original Artist | |
|---|---|---|
| Audition | "Think" | Aretha Franklin |
| Semi-final | "Respect" | Otis Redding |
2019–2020: X Factor Malta
editIn 2019, Chukunyere appeared in the Eurovision Song Contest 2019 in Tel Aviv, Israel as a backing singer for the Maltese entrant's, Michela Pace, song "Chameleon". The song qualified for the final, finishing in 14th place with 107 points.
In 2019, Chukunyere was revealed to be taking part in the second season of X Factor Malta. She was placed in the Girls category, mentored by Ira Losco, and advanced to the live shows. On 8 February 2020, she won the competition.
| Song | Original Artist(s) | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Audition | "Giving Myself" | Jennifer Hudson | 4 "Yes" votes |
| Bootcamp | "The Voice Within" | Christina Aguilera | |
| Six Chair Challenge | "Don't Call Me Up" | Mabel | |
| Judges' House | "It's a Man's Man's Man's World" | James Brown | |
| Live Shows | "Higher Love" | Steve Winwood | |
| "I Will Survive" | Gloria Gaynor | ||
| "He Lives in You" | Lebo M | ||
| Semi-final | "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" | Jennifer Holliday | |
| "This Is Me" | Keala Settle and The Greatest Showman Ensemble | ||
| Final | "Save the Hero" | Destiny Chukunyere | |
| "River Deep – Mountain High" | Ike & Tina Turner | Duet with Amelia Lily | |
| "Fejn Staħbejtli" | Ira Losco | ||
| "He Lives in You" | Lebo M |
2020–2021: Eurovision Song Contest
editDue to her X Factor Malta win, Chukunyere was to represent Malta in the Eurovision Song Contest 2020, taking place in Rotterdam, Netherlands. Her entry song, "All of My Love", was released on 9 March 2020. However, on 18 March, the event was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. On 16 May 2020, it was confirmed that Chukunyere would represent Malta at the 2021 contest with the song "Je me casse".[13] Her 2021 entry was released on 15 March 2021 on the official YouTube channel of the Eurovision Song Contest.[14] "Je me casse" was released on all major streaming services on 22 March 2021. She placed seventh in the final with 255 points, receiving 208 points from the juries and 47 points from the public.
2022–Present: The Voice Kids Malta
editOn July 15, 2022, it was announced that Chukunyere will be featured as a coach on the first season of The Voice Kids Malta.[15]
Musical style and influences
editChukunyere has named Aretha Franklin, Beyoncé, and Lizzo as her biggest idols and inspirations.[16]
Discography
editStudio albums
edit| Title | Details |
|---|---|
| Forever Away |
|
Singles
edit| Title | Year | Peak chart positions | Album | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MLT [18] |
BEL (FL) [19] |
IRE [20] |
NLD [21] |
SWE [22] |
SWI [23] |
UK Down. [24] | |||
| "All of My Love" (with B-Ok) |
2020 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | Non-album singles |
| "Je me casse" | 2021 | 1 | 48 | 79 | 36 | 31 | 83 | 41 | |
| "—" denotes items which were not released in that country or failed to chart. | |||||||||
Promotional singles
edit| Title | Year | Album |
|---|---|---|
| "Festa t'Ilwien" | 2014 | Non-album singles |
| "Embrace" | 2016 | |
| "Fast Life (Ladidadi)" |
References
edit- ^ "Who is Destiny Chukunyere?". TVM. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016.
- ^ "Nigerian Igbo tribe presents Destiny with recognition award". Oikotimes. 2 January 2016. Archived from the original on 5 March 2016.
- ^ Cremona, George (12 July 2015). ""Xħin rebħet binti, aġixxejt qisni rbaħt logħba futbol" – Ndubisi Chuckunyere" (in Maltese). Newsbook. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016.
- ^ Zammit, Mark Lawrence (19 October 2016). "RITRATT: L-ewwel ritratt ta' Melody, oħt Destiny Chukunyere" (in Maltese). Xarabank. Archived from the original on 18 November 2016.
- ^ "Three Maltese singers for San Remo Junior". The Times (Malta). 12 April 2015. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016.
- ^ Fisher, Luke James (11 July 2015). "Destiny Chukunyere to represent Malta in Sofia!". EBU. European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 13 July 2015.
- ^ Pace, Fiorella (12 July 2015). "So happy to have won such a prestigious contest but I wish to remain the Destiny that I am". TVM. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016.
- ^ a b "Junior Eurovision 2015 winning team feature in Republic Day honours". TVM. 13 December 2015. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016.
- ^ Ross, Samantha (21 November 2015). "Breaking News: Congratulations, Malta!". EBU. Archived from the original on 2 April 2016.
- ^ Galea, Stefan Paul (20 May 2017). "Destiny gets thumbs up from Simon Cowell". Malta Today. Archived from the original on 23 May 2017.
- ^ Gatt, Christopher (23 May 2017). "Worried about Malta's Destiny". The Times. Malta. Archived from the original on 11 September 2018. Retrieved 25 June 2017.
- ^ "It's almost time for Semi-final 2! Here are the acts hoping to win your votes". ITV. 30 May 2017. Archived from the original on 30 May 2017.
- ^ "Excuse her French! Destiny releases 'Je Me Casse'". Eurovision.tv. 15 March 2021. Archived from the original on 15 March 2021. Retrieved 15 March 2021.
- ^ Destiny - Je Me Casse - Malta 🇲🇹 - Official Music Video - Eurovision 2021, 15 March 2021, archived from the original on 16 May 2023, retrieved 22 March 2021
- ^ "Meet The 3 Coaches For The Voice Kids Malta". 15 July 2022. Archived from the original on 26 July 2022. Retrieved 25 July 2022.
- ^ Eurovision Song Contest 2021: BBC documentary goes behind-the-scenes in Rotterdam, 17 May 2021, archived from the original on 24 June 2021, retrieved 24 June 2021
- ^ "Forever Away - Album by Destiny". Spotify. Archived from the original on 31 August 2023. Retrieved 31 August 2023.
- ^ "Malta - Radio Airplay Chart (13/05/2021 - 20/05/2021)". Radiomonitor. Archived from the original on 21 May 2021. Retrieved 16 April 2021.
- ^ "Discografie Destiny" (in Dutch). Ultratop. Archived from the original on 2 June 2021. Retrieved 31 May 2021.
- ^ "Discography Destiny". irish-charts.com. Archived from the original on 27 October 2021. Retrieved 29 May 2021.
- ^ "Discografie Destiny". dutchcharts.nl. Archived from the original on 10 June 2021. Retrieved 29 May 2021.
- ^ "Veckolista Singlar, vecka 21". Sverigetopplistan. Archived from the original on 29 May 2021. Retrieved 28 May 2021.
- ^ "Discographie Destiny". hitparade.ch (in German). Archived from the original on 2 June 2021. Retrieved 31 May 2021.
- ^ "Official Singles Downloads Chart: 28 May 2021 – 3 June 2021". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 3 June 2021. Retrieved 29 May 2021.