Renee Namakau Ombaba

Renee Namakau Ombaba was raised in Jackson, Mississippi and moved to the DMV in 2015. Born to Zambian and Kenyan parents in Lowell, MA, she learned her love for music at an early age. She enjoyed banging on the piano while her mom cleaned the church. Noticing her interest in music, Renee Namakau’s mom enrolled her and her sister in piano lessons when Renee Namakau was in the third grade. By the age of 12, Renee Namakau began telling many of her friends that she was an opera singer often taking on the persona of an opera diva. She earned her Bachelors in Vocal Performance from Jackson State University in 2012. In 2014, she earned her Master’s in Southern Studies from the University of Mississippi.

In 2019, Renee Namakau founded Black Women in Opera (BWIO) to expand the benefits of the intergenerational meetings of women and highlight the past and current achievements of Black women opera singers. BWIO seeks to be the premiere source of knowledge and news about Black opera divas. In the future, the organization will be instrumental in sponsoring the vocal education of high school seniors. She learned the value of strong female leadership in her home and her community at a young age. Her grandmother’s and aunt’s devotion to women’s suffrage and political advancement in Zambia sparked her interest in women’s empowerment. BWIO allows Renee Namakau to marry her love for music with her passion of uplifting women in this male-dominated field.

Renee Namakau recently earned third place in The National Association of Negro Musicians, Inc’s Local Competition in Washington, D.C. Washington Improv Theater awarded Renee Namakau with a scholarship to complete her education in Improv comedy theater. Under the supervision of Kelvin Page, Renee Namakau soars as a vocalist and continues to fine tune her talents in classical voice. Renee Namakau works for Hales Government Solutions as the Director of Strategic Partnerships and Operations. In her free time, she enjoys any murder mystery novel by Attica Locke or Stephen L. Carter, any book by Toni Morrison or Terry McMillan, playing the accompaniment part of her vocal music, and hanging out with her friends. She hopes to work in the next Emmy Award winning series or in any feature opposite Viola Davis.