Senior With Famous Connections 

By: Jenna Jenkerson

April 8, 2025

   Senior Oceanne Kiyana can say things not every 17-year-old can say. She’s lived in three different countries, she’s bilingual and also has a famous mom.  

   Kiyana’s mom is an acclaimed gospel singer from Democratic Republic of the Congo named Dena Mwana. She has five acclaimed albums under her belt with her song Saint-Esprit having 39 million views on YouTube. Famous mainly in the francophone world, it’s fair to say Kiyana has lived a different life compared to her peers.  

   “I've lived in Africa and in America,” said Kiyana. “So, it's a lot different from what my friends were experiencing, even though their parents were in similar careers.” 

   Kiyana was in elementary school when she realized her mom was famous. She realized this when she went to one of her mom’s concerts and started participating in her music videos.  

   “My mom had a New Year's concert in Africa and when we got to the VIP section, like when I looked back, I saw at least 3000 people or more,” said Kiyana. “I was just like, they're all here for her?” 

   Even though Kiyana has acknowledged it’s cool to have a famous mom, it was also difficult for her, especially in middle school and her freshman year of High School. People have purposely gotten closer to her to get closer to her mom, or to reap special benefits such as tickets to her mother’s concerts.  

  “There was just a lot of people leaving, coming over, us having to go to different churches, talking to different people,” said Kiyana. “Experiencing all of that as a pre-teen and teenager was kind of hard for me.” 

  This, however, stopped when Kiyana moved from the Democratic Republic of Congo to Virginia in her sophomore year. She could finally be herself and not portray herself differently because of her mom’s popularity. 

   “Just being able to live without people having that image of you, or having to like stay for certain image because of your mom just made it a lot more easier for me to experience my last years of high school,” said Kiyana. 

   Kiyana has been asked if she’ll pursue a similar career. 

   “I do enjoy performing and stuff like that when it comes to me choosing if I want to, but I don't think I'm going to push myself to that kind of career,” said Kiyana.  

   She and her mom have a good relationship, even with the difficulties navigating the public spotlight 

    “She knows how to keep her personal life in her celebrity and everything, so she doesn't invade my privacy,” said Kiyana. “Me and her have a perfect relationship.”