Madame Joyce, whose real name is Joyce Anne Deji is a British Nigerian podcaster radio host presenter and digital creator who has built one of the most recognizable independent media brands in the United Kingdom. Born on 30 September 1997 she grew up in a Yoruba Nigerian household as the fourth of six children originally from Dublin, Ireland before her family relocated to London. She is best known as the creator and co host of Cocktails and Takeaways, a podcast that started during lockdown on Universal Credit and grew into an award winning cultural phenomenon with millions of listeners. Her story is one of the more compelling in modern British media a young woman who bet on herself with no industry backing and ended up reshaping what a British podcast could look and sound like.
| Details | Information |
|---|---|
| Full Name | Joyce Anne Deji |
| Known As | Madame Joyce |
| Known For | British-Nigerian podcaster, presenter, and media personality best known as the creator and host of Cocktails and Takeaways |
| Gender | Female |
| Nationality | British-Nigerian |
| Date of Birth | 30 September 1997 |
| Age | 29 years old |
| Birthplace | Dublin, Ireland |
| Raised In | London, England |
| Ethnicity | Nigerian (Yoruba) |
| Religion | Not publicly stated |
| Education | Real Estate Management, Kingston University (graduated 2019) |
| Profession | Podcaster, Radio Host, Presenter, Digital Creator, and Media Personality |
| Podcast | Cocktails and Takeaways |
| Podcast Launch | June 2021 |
| First Episode | Stop Squeezing Girls Butts Unprovoked |
| Podcast Achievement | More than 17 million combined views and listens, with approximately 70,000 weekly listeners at its peak |
| Awards | Two-time MOBO Award-nominated presenter |
| Recognition | Cocktails and Takeaways recognized as Podcast of the Year by GQ and The Huffington Post |
| Brand Partners | Spotify, JD Sports, Footasylum, Amazon, JBL, BuzzFeed, Tinder, Tango, and The Prince’s Trust |
| Social Media | Over 140,000 Instagram followers with a growing presence on YouTube and TikTok |
| Music Career | Released the official music video for GLE in 2025 featuring Adeola Patronne, Mariam Musa, and Shani Jamilah |
| Career Start | Launched Cocktails and Takeaways in 2021 while receiving Universal Credit |
| Family Background | Fourth of six children in a Yoruba-Nigerian household |
| Parents | Not publicly documented beyond family references |
| Marital Status | Not publicly disclosed |
| Partner | Not publicly disclosed |
| Children | Not publicly disclosed |
| Residence | London, England |
| Current Status | Actively expanding her media brand through podcasting, social media, music, and commercial partnerships |
| Legacy / Recognition | Considered one of the most influential independent Black British female podcast creators, contributing significantly to the growth of the UK podcasting landscape |
What makes Madame Joyce stand out in a crowded podcasting landscape is a combination of things that are hard to manufacture: genuine warmth, sharp cultural instincts, and an ability to have honest conversations that feel real rather than rehearsed. She has been twice nominated for a MOBO Award, one of the most respected honours in British Black music and culture, and her podcast has been recognized as Podcast of the Year by both GQ Magazine and The Huffington Post. Beyond the awards, she has built a loyal community of listeners who show up week after week because the content connects with them on a personal level. That kind of audience loyalty is what separates a media personality from a genuine cultural voice.
Joyce Anne Deji was born in Dublin, Ireland, on 30 September 1997 and was raised in a lively Yoruba Nigerian household as one of six children. Her parents, Mr and Mrs Deji, brought the family to London, where she grew up and where her media career would eventually take shape. Growing up in a large family with Nigerian cultural roots in a British city gave her a particular perspective on identity, community, and communication that runs through everything she does publicly. That background also gave her an early appreciation for storytelling, conversation, and the kind of humor that comes from navigating multiple cultural worlds at the same time.
After finishing school, Madame Joyce went on to study Real Estate Management at Kingston University, graduating in 2019. It is not the most obvious degree for someone who went on to build a media empire, but she has spoken about how the analytical and business thinking she developed during that time gave her a practical edge when it came to building and running her own brand. Her time at university also gave her space to develop her communication skills and figure out what kind of creative work she actually wanted to do.The shift from real estate to podcasting was gradual, with the groundwork being laid long before the career change became visible.
Madame Joyce’s entry into media did not follow the traditional route of journalism school or industry internships. She started her podcast in 2021 while she was on Universal Credit, a detail she has been open about and which has become an important part of her story. At the time, the UK podcasting scene did not have many examples of solo Black female creators who had turned their shows into genuine brands. She spotted that gap and moved into it with a clear voice and a consistent format. Her debut episode, titled Stop Squeezing Girls Butts Unprovoked, set the tone immediately: funny, direct, culturally tuned in, and completely unfiltered.
The name Madame Joyce carries a particular energy, confident, a little theatrical, and memorable. It reflects the kind of personal branding that has become central to how she operates. She has spoken about podcasting during lockdown as an escape from a boring nine to five job, which is a relatable starting point that resonates with a large part of her audience. What turned that starting point into a brand was consistency, personality, and a genuine instinct for what her audience wanted to talk about. She did not try to copy what was already working in British podcasting. She created something that felt distinctly hers.
Cocktails and Takeaways launched in June 2021 and quickly found its audience. The format is built around the idea of having the kinds of conversations you would have with your closest friends on a night in, with drinks and food, talking about everything from celebrity news to relationships to wider cultural topics. The podcast is available on Apple Podcasts and Spotify and has accumulated over 17 million combined views and listens, with around 70,000 listeners tuning in weekly at its peak. The combination of humor, honesty, and cultural commentary has made it one of the standout British podcasts of the 2020s, particularly within Black British media.
The range of topics covered on Cocktails and Takeaways reflects Madame Joyce’s own range as a thinker and communicator. Celebrity culture and gossip sit alongside more serious conversations about relationships, self worth, identity, and what it means to be a young Black woman navigating modern Britain. She has also been open about topics like dating, independence, and the tension between being fiercely self sufficient and allowing yourself to be vulnerable in relationships. These are conversations that resonate with her core audience precisely because they feel honest rather than packaged for public consumption.
Anyone who has watched or listened to Madame Joyce will recognize a few consistent qualities. She is quick, funny, and never sounds like she is performing a version of herself for the camera. Her humor is observational and culturally specific without being exclusive, which is part of why her audience has grown beyond the demographic you might expect for a Black British podcast. She also has a quality that is genuinely rare in media: she listens. Her guest episodes work because she is actually interested in what people are saying rather than just waiting to respond. That combination of sharp humor and genuine curiosity is what makes her show work at its best.
Building a loyal audience from scratch without a broadcaster or label behind you requires a particular kind of consistency and self belief. Madame Joyce has done it by showing up regularly, staying true to her voice, and understanding how to use social media platforms not just to promote content but to build genuine community. She has over 140,000 followers on Instagram and a growing presence across YouTube and TikTok. Her brand partnerships reflect the size and quality of her audience too, with collaborations including Spotify, JD Sports, Footasylum, Amazon, JBL, BuzzFeed, Tinder, Tango, and The Prince’s Trust among others.
The impact Madame Joyce has had on British podcasting goes beyond her own numbers. She arrived at a time when Black British women were underrepresented in the podcasting space, particularly as solo creators running their own shows, and she demonstrated that there was a large and engaged audience waiting for content that spoke directly to them. Her success has opened doors, not just for her, but for other creators who followed a similar path. Being twice nominated for a MOBO Award in a category that did not even exist in its current form a few years ago is a marker of how much the landscape has shifted.
Outside of her media work, Madame Joyce has been open about her personal life in ways that feel considered rather than overshared. She has talked about relationships, independence, and navigating modern dating as a fiercely self sufficient woman, themes her audience connects with strongly. In 2025 she expanded her creative work into music, releasing the official video for a track called GLE featuring fellow creators Adeola Patronne, Mariam Musa, and Shani Jamilah. That kind of creative expansion feels consistent with her broader approach, using her platform to try new things rather than staying in one lane.
One of the more significant things about Madame Joyce’s career is that she built it independently. She did not come up through a broadcaster or a major media company. She started with a microphone, a format, and a point of view, and turned that into a brand with sold out live shows, major brand partnerships, and award nominations. That model of independent media building is increasingly how the next generation of media personalities are building careers, and Madame Joyce is one of the clearer examples of what it looks like when it works. Her LinkedIn posts about building a business from Universal Credit have resonated with thousands of young creators for exactly this reason.
A few things about Madame Joyce stand out. She started her podcast while on Universal Credit, which she has been publicly open about. She is the fourth of six children in a Yoruba Nigerian family. She studied Real Estate Management at Kingston University before pivoting entirely to media. Her first podcast episode was titled Stop Squeezing Girls Butts Unprovoked. She has been twice nominated for a MOBO Award. Her podcast has accumulated over 17 million combined views and listens. She attended Coachella 2023 as part of the YouTube Shorts Content Studio. And she has worked with global brands including Spotify, Amazon, and The Prince’s Trust.
As of 2026, Madame Joyce is continuing to grow her media presence across podcasting, social media, and now music. Cocktails and Takeaways remains her flagship platform, and she continues to develop her brand through live events, brand partnerships, and new creative projects. Her move into music in 2025 with the GLE video suggests she is deliberately expanding what the Madame Joyce brand covers, moving from podcast host toward something closer to a full spectrum media and cultural personality. Given how quickly she built what she has already, the next phase of her career is worth watching closely.
Who is Madame Joyce?
She is a British Nigerian podcaster, presenter, and media personality best known as the creator of Cocktails and Takeaways, one of the UK’s most recognized independent podcasts.
What is Madame Joyce’s real name?
Her real name is Joyce Anne Deji.
Where is Madame Joyce from?
She was born in Dublin, Ireland, and grew up in London after her family relocated there.
What awards has Madame Joyce been nominated for?
She has been twice nominated for a MOBO Award and her podcast has been named Podcast of the Year by both GQ Magazine and The Huffington Post.
How did Madame Joyce start her podcast?
She launched Cocktails and Takeaways in 2021 while on Universal Credit, during lockdown, as a creative outlet from a nine to five job she found unfulfilling.
Madame Joyce’s story is genuinely one of the more inspiring in modern British media. She did not wait for permission or a platform from an established broadcaster. She built her own from scratch, on her own terms, with her own voice, and turned it into something that has influenced the wider podcasting landscape in the UK. Her journey from Universal Credit to MOBO nominations, sold out live shows, and global brand partnerships is the kind of trajectory that matters because it shows what is possible when someone combines talent with consistency and self belief. She is still in the relatively early stages of what looks like a long career, and the foundation she has built is a strong one.
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