Abena Appiah

Evelyn Abena Akuaba Appiah (born June 2, 1993) is a Ghanaian–American singer, model and beauty queen who was crowned Queen Beauty Universe 2016 and Miss Grand International 2020.^[1][2] She was appointed as Miss Grand USA and became the first Black woman to win the Miss Grand International crown.^[3][4] She previously represented Ghana in two of the Big Four international beauty pageants but lost in Miss Universe 2014 and Miss Earth 2019.^[5][6]

Abena Appiah
Born	Evelyn Abena Akuaba Appiah (1993-06-02) June 2, 1993 (age 30) Accra, Ghana
Education	Radford University College Fashion
Height	1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)
Beauty pageant titleholder
Title	Top Model of the World Ghana 2013 Miss Universe Ghana 2014 Queen Beauty Universe 2016 Miss Earth Ghana 2019 Miss Grand USA 2020 Miss Grand International 2020
Hair color	Black
Eye color	Brown
Major competition(s)	Top Model Ghana 2013 (Winner) Top Model of the World 2013 (Unplaced) Miss Universe Ghana 2014 (Winner) Miss Universe 2014 (Unplaced) Queen Beauty Universe 2016 (Winner) Miss World America 2017 (Top 16) Miss Earth Ghana 2019 (Winner) Miss Earth 2019 (Top 20) Miss Grand USA 2020 (Winner) Miss Grand International 2020 (Winner)

Early career

Abena is also a singer who has released several singles, including "Akomah" (2015), "Earth" (2019), "No Hit and Run" (2019) and "No More Hate" (2021).^[7] She has worked as a model, appearing in music videos for "Wake Up in the Sky" sung by Bruno Mars, Gucci Mane and Kodak Black, as well as "El Anillo" by Jennifer Lopez.^[8]

Pageantry

Abena started joining pageants when she won Top Model Ghana in 2013 and represented her country in Top Model of the World where she finished at top 15. The following year, she represented Ghana in Miss Universe 2014 but she was unplaced.^[9][10]

She joined Miss World America 2017 representing New York. After couple of years, she represented Ghana again at Miss Earth 2019, where she placed in the Top 20 and won several awards.^[11][12] She trained under the Kagandahang Flores camp, a Philippines-based pageant camp that trains aspiring beauty queens for local and international pageants.^[13][14]

Miss Grand International 2020

She joined Miss Grand USA 2020, where she was hailed as the winner and the first African-American to win the title.^[15][16] She eventually crowned as the winner of Miss Grand International 2020 by the outgoing titleholder Miss Grand International 2019, Valentina Figuera of Venezuela, on March 27, 2021, at Show DC Hall in Bangkok, Thailand making her the first woman from the United States to win the crown.^[17]

Placements

Competition	Placement	Location	Special Awards	Represented
Top Model Ghana 2013^[18]	Winner	Ghana		Accra, Ghana
Top Model of the World 2013^[19]	Unplaced	Red Sea, Egypt		Ghana
Miss Universe Ghana 2014	Winner	Accra, Ghana		Accra, Ghana
Miss Universe 2014	Unplaced	Florida, United States		Ghana
Queen Beauty Universe 2016^[20]	Winner	Spain		Ghana
Miss World America 2017	Top 16	Florida, United States	Top 10 – Top Model Top 10 – Sports and Fitness	New York
Miss Earth Ghana 2019	Winner	Accra, Ghana		Accra, Ghana
Miss Earth 2019	Top 20	Manila, Philippines	Best in Evening Gown (Air) Best in Beach Wear (Air) Best in Talent (Air) Best in Resorts Wear (Air) Miss Vivo (Air) Miss Infinity Cosset (Air) Miss DOH Reg 5 (Air) People's Choice Award Best in Philippine Terno Miss Earth Flora 1st runner-up	Ghana
Miss Grand USA 2020	Appointed	New York		New York
Miss Grand International 2020	Winner	Bangkok, Thailand	Top 20 – Best in Swimsuit Top 20 – How to eat Thai food in 2-minute Challenge	United States of America

References

1. . India Times. December 22, 2016. Archived from the original on July 13, 2017. Retrieved March 31, 2021.
2. . Rappler. March 27, 2021. Archived from the original on March 27, 2021. Retrieved March 31, 2021.
3. Wilson, Alyssa (April 2, 2021). . Black News Channel. Archived from the original on March 26, 2022. Retrieved April 2, 2021.
4. "Miss USA is first Black contender to win Miss Grand International crown". The Philippine Star. March 28, 2021. Retrieved March 28, 2021.
5. Mario Dumaual (March 28, 2021). . ABS-CBN Corporation. Archived from the original on March 29, 2021. Retrieved March 31, 2021.
6. . ABS-CBN Corporation. Archived from the original on March 29, 2021. Retrieved March 31, 2021.
7. "Abena Akuaba Appiah Songs on Apple Music". Apple Music. Retrieved March 28, 2021.
8. "Get to know USA's Miss Grand International Abena Akuaba Appiah". The Philippine Star. Retrieved March 28, 2021.
9. Jojo Gabinete (March 30, 2021). (in Tagalog). Archived from the original on March 30, 2021. Retrieved March 31, 2021.
10. "Miss Grand International Abena Appiah has message to Filipino bashers". ABS-CBN Corporation. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
11. "Miss Earth Ghana becomes an instant viral sensation with another comedic one-liner". News24. Retrieved October 18, 2019.
12. "Who is Miss Earth Ghana 2019 Evelyn Abena Appiah?". Rappler. October 17, 2019. Retrieved October 17, 2019.
13. Gagan Singh (March 28, 2021). . Greh India. Archived from the original on March 30, 2021. Retrieved March 31, 2021.
14. Bernie V. Franco (March 29, 2021). . Pep. Archived from the original on March 30, 2021. Retrieved March 31, 2021.
15. Camille Santiago (March 28, 2021). . The Philippine Star Life. Archived from the original on March 30, 2021. Retrieved March 31, 2021.
16. . Schick. July 10, 2020. Archived from the original on August 10, 2020. Retrieved March 31, 2021.
17. Cherry Sun (March 28, 2021). . GMA Network. Archived from the original on March 28, 2021. Retrieved March 31, 2021.
18. . India Times. July 9, 2020. Archived from the original on March 30, 2021. Retrieved March 31, 2021.
19. . Graphic Showbiz. October 10, 2016. Archived from the original on November 13, 2016. Retrieved March 31, 2021.
20. . Africulture. October 2016. Archived from the original on March 27, 2021. Retrieved March 31, 2021.

External links

 

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Abena Appiah.

• Abena Appiah at IMDb

Awards and achievements
Preceded by   Valentina Figuera	Miss Grand International 2020	Succeeded by   Nguyễn Thúc Thùy Tiên
Preceded by   Emily Irene Delgado	Miss Grand USA 2020	Succeeded by   Madison Callaghan
Preceded by Belvy Naa	Miss Earth Ghana 2019	Succeeded by Emma Djentuh
Preceded by Hanniel Jamin	Miss Universe Ghana 2014	Succeeded by Hilda Akua