KENT NEWS: Gifted student Yolanda Brown has already scooped two Mobo awards for her music, and has now been named as one of Britain’s most outstanding black students.
Saxophonist Yolanda is a PhD student from the University of Kent, and has been tipped for the top in a publication called Future Leaders 2010, which was launched by Prime Minister Gordon Brown.
It honours 30 of Britain’s most exceptional black students, who balance academic excellence with extraordinary outside achievements. On the judging panel was minister for higher education, David Lammy.
Yolanda, 27, won the major music awards for her skills with a saxophone, and she released her debut EP Finding My Voice in 2007.
She has completed a master’s degree in management science, a master’s in social research methods, and is currently studying for her PhD at the University of Kent.
The student has even managed to squeeze in a tour with The Temptations and recently performed for the Russian president, Dmitry Medvedev, at the Winter Palace in St Petersburg.
She is currently working on her debut album and will tour Britain in March this year.
Of her outstanding student award, she said: “It is an honour to have been included in this publication and very rewarding to be recognised for my achievements so far.
“I am truly grateful for the support both in academia and music.”
And Professor Paul Phillips, director of Kent Business School at the University of Kent, added: “We are all delighted by Yolanda’s success – she has been a great addition to Kent Business School and for her to combine her musical ability as well as work at the highest level of academic study is a fantastic achievement.”
POSTED: 07/02/2010 13:00:00
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