Defining moments of his 11-year-music career

Nigerian music star, David Adeleke is popular David or OBO (Omo Baba Olowo), turned 30 on November 21st.

Unlike his previous birthdays, the singer has failed and has since left social media the death of his sonIfeanyi, in October.

Although the pain is felt by all who love him, many pray that he will break his silence and return with his beautiful energy.

During his 11-year career, the artist has had decisive moments. Here, PREMIUM TIMES highlights some of them

2012 next hits and secondary hits

Davido won The Headies’ Next Rated award in 2012 after releasing “Dami Duro”, the second single from his debut album Omo Baba Olowo (2012).

This winner left his mark forever etched in the hearts of fans in the music industry. Between 2013 and 2015, he released several hit singles including ‘Gobe’, ‘Skelewu’, ‘Aye’ and ‘One of a kind’.

DMW presentation and Sony Deal

In January 2016, he signed a record deal with Sony Music and founded Davido Music Worldwide (DMW), a record label that signed actors Dremo, Mayorkun, Peruzzi and Liya.

In July 2016, Davido signed a record deal with Sony’s RCA Records. In October 2016, he released the 5-song EP “Son of Mercy”, supported by the singles “Gbagbe Oshi”, “How Long” and “Coolest Kid in Africa”.

The following year, Davido renegotiated his contract with Sony due to creative control issues and released five singles that same year, including “If” and “Fall”.

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He also released hit songs ‘Fia’ and ‘Assurance’ in 2017.

FUN, BETTER

In November 2019 he released his second studio album ‘A Good Time’, supported by the singles ‘Blow My Mind’ with famous American singer Chris Brown.

In 2019 he was also mentioned by New African magazine as one of the 100 most influential Africans and sold out the 02 Arena concert in the same year.

The artist released his third studio album, “A Better Time”, in November 2020. This album has a photo of his late son holding him as a baby as the album cover.

Birthday fundraiser

On his 29th birthday in November 2021, the Afrobeat singer took to his Instagram story to ask his colleagues to send him one million naira.

David revealed that he received N200m from fans and friends and added one million to the money.

He donated N250m to all orphanages in Nigeria; he formed a committee of five people to take care of the logistics and pay the money.

The singer revealed this in a statement before his birthday. To pay the money, he formed a committee of five people to take care of the logistics.

FIFA 2022, AWAY festival

In March 2022, Davido appeared on “Hayya Hayya (Better Together)” (Trinidad Cardona & AISHA) alongside the first multi-track single from the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™ Official Sound Band. It marked Davido as the first Nigerian singer to feature on a FIFA World Cup single.

In May 2022, Davido released another song titled “Stand Strong” which featured The Samples Choir and was a departure from his usual musical style.

He also announced that his first annual festival, “Are We African Yet (AWAY)”, which was to be held at the State Farm Arena in Atlanta, Georgia on November 18, has now been moved to 2023.

Performance 02 (2022)

In March 2022, Davido was one of two African acts to sell out London’s 02 arena multiple times.

The highlight of his show was his supporter, Israel, who opened the show with costumes and songs from Benin.

Davido was also honored by the House of Representatives of Belize, Honorable Shyne Barrow, with an award as an outstanding global citizen.

He also performed with Victony, Mayorkun and Popcaan and received a new watch from luxury jeweler Benny Da Jeweler, who unveiled his latest piece in front of a massive crowd of 20,000.

Morgan Freeman

In March 2020, the artists a promotional video for his concertThe voice of the legendary American actor Morgan Freeman.

Referring to Davido’s musical prowess and steps, Freeman, in his signature voice, said: “We rise by lifting others. This is part of his (Davido’s) legacy. Everything he does is for that. This music is a way to not only inspire but uplift people. We rise with others to join Davido as he closes the London 02 Arena. Go directly to UDUX only”.

It was the first time that the respected actor known for his distinctive voice was doing a project for any Nigerian act or brand.

Freeman is known for his roles in a variety of film genres.

Gold certificates

Davido’s singles ‘If’ and ‘fall’ were certified gold in the United States after selling over 500,000 digital and physical copies.

Although both songs were released in 2017, ‘If’ was certified gold in 2020, and Fall in 2021.

These certificates were issued by the RIAA.

Davido’s 2019 album ‘A Good Time’ and two other singles, ‘Blow my Mind’ featuring Chris Brown and ‘Risky’ also went platinum.

The latter, Jamaican dancehall act Popcaan, went double platinum.

26M+ Instagram followers

The artist has over 26 million followers on Instagram, the highest among Nigerian artists.

Davido ahead of Wizkid who has over 15 million followers and Burna boy who has over 12 million followers.

This massive following has brought him numerous ambassador deals and endorsements.

PLAY STATION

In March 2022, he teamed up with the Japanese game developers of Gran Turismo to launch a game competition on Playstation.

To celebrate the launch of the Gran Turismo 7 racing game. Playstation introduced Davido as one of the celebrities who will be the face of the new edition and online challenge.

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Coming to America

In 2021, Davido played himself Coming to America 2The highly anticipated sequel to the 1988 film.

It was a great feat because of the new audience it introduced and the importance of the film.

During the film, he also performed one of his hit songs, ‘Assurance’.

ENDSARS protest

David Muhammadu Adamu met with the Inspector General of Police during the 2020 #EndSARS protests.

The protests were against the widespread brutality of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) and the Police.

The FEM crooner joined other protesters on the streets of Abuja as protests continued in parts of the country despite the announcement of the disbanding of the police unit.