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Angélique Kidjo had attended the Grammy Awards as a nominated artist on three different occasions in Los Angeles before 2008.

And on three different occasions, Kidjo lost.

So when her latest release, “Djin Djin,” was put up for best world contemporary album earlier this year, the Benin-born vocalist wasn’t getting her hopes up.

“At first I did not want to go to the actual ceremony,” Kidjo said in an interview via e-mail from the road in Texas. “People around me had to convince me. I was very cautious because I had been there before and you can get disappointed.”

Kidjo ended up taking the top honor, beating out Brazilian singers Gilberto Gil, Bebel Gilberto and Ceu, and Canadian vocalist Loreena McKennitt.

“The Grammy staff has never seen someone so happy,” Kidjo said.

The win is good timing for Tucsonans and for UApresents, which can now brag it has yet another Grammy-winning musician coming through Centennial Hall.

Kidjo will perform songs from “Djin Djin” and her nine other studio releases at the campus venue on Saturday.

It is her Old Pueblo debut, according to press materials, and Kidjo’s only performance in Arizona before moving on to California, then the East Coast, then Europe.

All in a month’s work for an artist who is intimately familiar with the music world.

Kidjo, 47, has been singing and performing since she was a child growing up in West Africa, a young talent with Miriam Makeba, James Brown and Jimi Hendrix among her musical heroes. As an adult, her style reflects the diversity of those early influences.

Kidjo is known for blending covers like the great jazz standard “Summertime” and Hendrix’s “Voodoo Child” in with songs reflecting the musical climate of her home country.

“Djin Djin” continues the tradition.

“Before recording ‘Djin Djin,’ I had done a trilogy of albums exploring the African roots of the music throughout the history of slavery,” Kidjo said. “I spent so much time talking about the rhythms of my country that I wanted to base an album on those rhythms.”

As in past releases, “Djin Djin” moves flawlessly between songs sung in the languages of Benin, Nigeria and Togo as well as in French and English.

Tracks such as “Salala,” a flowing, musical celebration of birth, works hand-in-hand with covers like Sade’s “Pearls” in creating a diverse cultural experience for the listener.

Kidjo even manages to throw her own adaptation of Ravel’s “Bolero,” titled “Lonlon,” into the mix ”

“Ravel was the first classical composer to integrate the spirit of Africa in his music with the use of modes and repetitive rhythms.” Kidjo said. “I paid homage to him by writing lyrics and making an African arrangement of his bolero.”

Kidjo said she isn’t quite sure why “Djin Djin” took home the Grammy when the previously nominated releases made her just as proud.

Some believe it is due to the sheer star power behind the release.

Producer Tony Visconti, whose past collaborations include projects with Morrissey and David Bowie, helped bring the album, recorded in Hendrix’s Electric Lady Studio New York City, to life.

“He understood my vision,” Kidjo said. “He already had the experience of working with African musicians like Osibisa. We recorded live and everyone was jamming.”

Then there was the long list of major talent featured.

Aside from the stellar accompanists that included Youssou N’Dour’s bassist Habib Faye and Herbie Hancock’s guitarist Lionel Loueke, “Djin Djin” features appearances from the likes of Peter Gabriel, Joss Stone, Carlos Santana, Josh Groban and others.

Ziggy Marley lends his voice to the track “Sedjedo,” a song that deals with growing older, and Alicia Keys and Branford Marsalis team up with Kidjo for a three-way of talent on the album’s title track.

“I had met all of them before the album,” Kidjo said. “I knew they liked my music, and I was a big fan of theirs. I am so grateful to them. I know this Grammy belongs to them, also.”

With critical acclaim and a continuous string of sold-out shows across the country, Kidjo hasn’t had time to settle down and enjoy life after the Grammy win.

“I need to find the right balance, and it is hard on my family,” Kidjo said. “But when you are a musician, your dream is always to perform. When you have so many offers, it is hard to say no.”