A few hours before electrifying a crowd gathered beneath the stage at a small-but-hip Hollywood concert venue, singer/songwriter Asa makes a surprising admission. Turns out that the Paris-based performer of Nigerian heritage (her name is pronounced Ah-shah), whose thought-provoking lyrics in English and the Yoruba dialect mine a deep political consciousness, loves nothing better to play practical jokes.

Not quite what one might expect from a woman whose self-titled debut album was released in the U.S. earlier this year, and drew immediate comparisons to soul icon Sade. “I know ... but I’m a just a very simple person,” explained Asa this week, dressed casually in faded jeans and leather jacket for an interview that was by turns playful and reflective. “I love playing pranks and being wicked — but I’m a good girl.”

Critics and digital-age music consumers seem to agree: Her LP — a transcend-the-spectrum fusion of soul, Afrobeat, folk, jazz, reggae, funk and pop — debuted at No. 1 on the iTunes World Music chart, and won the prestigious French Prix Constantin award for best album. As for mainstream recognition, she has thus far opened for the likes of Akon, John Legend, Beyoncé Knowles and Snoop Dogg. One reviewer called her voice “achingly pretty,” a natural talent used to great effect on standout selections like “Jailer,” the type of protest song that could haunt every African dictator to his grave.

“I’m honored when people say such things about my music,” said Asa, whose name means “hawk” in Yoruba. “Although, it’s funny when I hear people say ‘Asa, your stuff is so political,’ because this is what I grew up around. That’s what we know and see in Lagos, Nigeria. It’s not like I sat in a room, closed the windows and blocked out all the noise and said I’m going to write a song about politics. That was the story for me.”

She added: “My favorite song on the album is ‘Eye Adaba,’ which is a prayer song that translates to ‘the dove that flies.’ For Yorubas, the dove is a peaceful bird. When you’re in Lagos, as early as 4 a.m you start to hear the sequence, from the cockerel to the men playing cards, the noise of the road sellers and so on. On people’s faces you see worry and fear — what is today going to bring for me? I had that worry and I wanted the song to restore peace in our troubled minds.”

Born Bukola Elemide in Paris some 30 years ago, Asa moved to Lagos with her parents and three brothers when she was 2. A bit of a loner and tomboy, she took solace in her father’s extensive record collection, which included soul classics and Nigerian music — from Marvin Gaye, Aretha Franklin and Bob Marley to Fela Kuti, Ebenezer Obey and King Sunny Ade.

But dreams of a musical career were not the sort of practical thinking valued in African society — especially for a young woman — and artistic encouragement was in short supply. “I always wanted to play the guitar but never got the opportunity as a child,” Asa recalled. “There was a lot of negativity. It was like, ‘Hey girl wake up, forget it, this is Nigeria. We have to eat.’ So, I played a lot of air guitar, air piano and air drums.”

However, on her 19th birthday, her elder brother presented her with a flute and she says that became her studio. She began to devise lyrics and compose music in her head, but the following year she found herself at Lagos State University studying theater arts, because, as she puts it “I was running away from music.” But in short order, Nigeria’s everyday turmoil came to bear.

“The universities were on strike and I really did nothing for two years,” she said. “There was fear, cultism and a lot of politicking. I couldn’t stand it anymore, so I secretly enrolled in a small music school outside Lagos.”

It was there that she learned the basics of guitar playing, was introduced to the French cultural center and met a younger photography student named Janet Nwose. “Janet thought I was a foreigner from a neighboring country and wanted to do a documentary on me. She also played the guitar and after she heard some of my music she then introduced me to” the producer who helped oversee the recording of the album. Nwose, who is now Asa’s manager, joined her artist and guitarist Nicholas Mallard on Tuesday night for the L.A. performance before traveling to Oakland for a gig the next day.

“I’m just so excited right now,” said Asa. “They told me my song was No. 1 in Hong Kong. I’m like, what? What do I say to them in Hong Kong? Never in my life would I have believed that.”