Tunde Baiyewu (born Babatunde Emanuel Baiyewu, 25 November 1968) is a British singer of Nigerian descent and is a member of the easy listening duo, Lighthouse Family. In 2004 he embarked on a solo career, releasing the album Tunde, and in 2013 released his second album, Diamond in a Rock.
Tunde Baiyewu was born in London, but moved to Nigeria at the age of five after the death of his father. Ten years later he returned to Britain, attending the University of Northumbria in Newcastle upon Tyne, and obtained a degree in accounting. He subsequently met Paul Tucker who was also studying at Newcastle Northumbria University and was working at the same bar as Tunde – their partnership began and they formed Lighthouse Family.
In 2005, he appeared on the BBC Television one-off special, Strictly African Dancing. He came last, but he learned the Bata dance in the process.
On 12 November 2006, Baiyewu appeared in an ITV documentary called Faith in Music. This documentary charted his life and music, from his roots in Africa, through Lighthouse Family and into his current solo incarnation. It also showed him performing an acoustic set featuring tracks from his latest album.
In January 2007, Baiyewu held his first tour in over four years (the last time being with Lighthouse Family). He did four concerts from 13 to 16 January 2007 in Edinburgh, Manchester, Wolverhampton and London respectively. He combined his solo material with Lighthouse Family hits and dedicated each and every song to his nephew Funto.
Baiyewu released his second solo album, Diamond In A Rock, in the UK on 4 March 2013.
Baiyewu is an alumnus of Northumbria University, having completed an Accountancy degree in 1994.
In March 2007, Baiyewu married Tope Adeshina, a young Nigerian model, in Lagos, Nigeria. They live in the UK.
His mother went on to marry former Nigerian president Olusegun Obasanjo who, like both her and Baiyewu himself, is of the Yoruba ethnic group.
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