Broadway’s ‘Tina Turner’ star Nkeki Obi-Melekwe on supporting women

Nkeki Obi-Melekwe is soaring high as the star of Broadway’s “Tina: The Tina Turner Musical.”

Yet when Covid-19 pandemic shut down Broadway in March 2020, she was one of millions of suddenly unemployed workers. At the time, she was an alternate for the role of Tina Turner.

She left New York and spent time with her family in North Carolina.

“For me, as an artist, telling stories and speaking to an audience through performance is such a large part of who I am that for a long time, I felt like a part of myself just wasn’t intact,” said Obi-Melekwe, who is 25.

Fortunately, she knew that the show would come back to Broadway.

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“I knew that when we returned, her story of resilience would be needed more than ever,” she said. “Tina is ‘the queen of the comeback’ and now, coming out of the pandemic, I think we’re all working on our own personal comebacks, whatever that may be.”

Obi-Melekwe’s comeback happened in the summer of 2021 when Broadway reopened. In November, she took over the starring role in her show.

Now that she’s back in the spotlight, she’s using her voice to help lift up women.

“It’s important for all of us to … support each other during this time,” said Obi-Melekwe, who will be performing in Girls With Impact’s International Women’s Day Benefit Concert on Tuesday. The proceeds will enable Girls With Impact to train under-resourced young women in its business and leadership academy.

Obi-Melekwe’s involvement with the entrepreneurship program comes as the nonprofit has increased its focus to include young adults up to age 24. Prior to the pandemic, the focus was on girls in grades 7 through 12.

The young adults go through Girls With Impact‘s mini-MBA program and learn hard skills, like technology and finance, and soft skills, such as leadership, collaboration, agility and public speaking. They are then paired with a mentor for coaching.

“They will help guide that individual to land in a pathway, to land in college, to land in their first job or to land in their own business,” said Jennifer Openshaw, Girls With Impact’s founder and CEO.

To be sure, women were disproportionately impacted by the pandemic. Whether they were laid off or had to leave to care for children home from school, many struggled to make ends meet. In February of 2022, nearly two years into the pandemic, more than 1 million fewer women were in the labor force as compared to February 2020, according to…