Wayna

Wayna in 2009, photo by Prphotos

Birth Name: Woyneab Miraf Wondwossen

Place of Birth: Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Ethnicity: Ethiopian

Wayna is an Ethiopian-American R&B and soul singer and songwriter.

She was born in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, and moved with her family to the U.S. as a child, settling in Washington, D.C. She won Miss Black Unity at the University of Maryland in 1995. Wayna graduated university and worked as a writer in the White House, for the Clinton administration. Her influences include Stevie Wonder, Minnie Riperton, Billie Holiday, and Donny Hathaway.

Wayna is married to Kyle Stephen, with whom she has two children.