Inside Strictly star Eddie Kadi’s incredible career - and link to Lauryn Hill
Comedian Eddie Kadi was announced as the fifth celebrity to join the 2023 Strictly Come Dancing line-up last month and was recently tipped to become this year's fan-favourite sensation.
Eddie, who is also a host on BBC 1Xtra, said he was "unbelievably proud and honoured" and promised to bring “vibes” to the dancefloor this year. The star is competing alongside Les Dennis, Annabel Croft, Nigel Harman, Bobby Brazier, Jody Cundy CBE, Ellie Leach, Nikita Kanda, Adam Thomas, Zara McDermott, Angela Scanlon, Krishnan Guru-Murthy, Layton Williams, Angela Rippon and Amanda Abbington.
Before joining Strictly Come Dancing, Eddie already had an impressive resumé in the comedy world. He is a British-Congolese star who became the first British black comedian to headline the iconic O2 Arena in London and is renowned for his high-energy live shows.
Speaking about his early days doing stand-up comedy, he once revealed: "Early on, when I used to do stand-up, I didn’t think I was doing it, I was just telling stories about my culture. But a lot of people from that culture could relate, and those who weren’t found it revealing."
Eddie stays booked and busy on radio, TV and more (BBC/Ray Burmiston)
He even worked with Lauryn HillThe 40-year-old was also nominated for both the Royal Television Society Best Breakthrough Award and Best Breakthrough Presenter at the Edinburgh TV Awards. He is also in production for his own documentary with Channel 4. Eddie is always booked and busy as he hosted the MOBO Awards as well as the official red carpet show for BET International and BET Africa in Los Angeles.
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Fans might even recognise him from the main stage of the Afro Nation Festivals. The star also made many TV appearances, including on Blankety Blank, The National Comedy Awards, Tonight with Target, +44 Presents: The Noughties Podcast, Don't Hate the Playaz, and Road to Afro Nation: David Live.
Not only is he on TV but he fronts The Official Afrobeats Chart Show on BBC Radio 1Xtra and is also a team captain on Sorry I Didn't Know. The comedian even has a small connection to legendary hip-hop star Lauryn Hill. In 2017, he joined the 48-year-old singer at the Radio City Music Hall in New York City to perform stand-up.
Eddie joined Lauryn and Nas on their powernomic tour in the US, performing stand-up comedy across various states. He has even hosted for Wizkid and Burna Boy on tour. And now, Eddie is branching out and trying his hand at waltzing and salsaing on Strictly Come Dancing.
He's already being tipped to follow the same trajectory as presenter Hamza Yassin who captured the hearts of the nation last year. A Strictly source said: “Eddie’s had a breakthrough year and is really popular with his fans but has not had mainstream success yet and will be an unknown quantity to a lot of Strictly viewers.
"But that is set to change. He is really likeable, and the word is he can dance. Many are likening him to Hamza, who eventually won.”
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