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Davido’s celebration of 10 years in the music industry has the music world in a frenzy. Many wonder how the superrich kid who hacked his way into the global music scene when nobody was ready to give him a chance is still dominating the scene for a decade.
While it may seem natural that Davido, who according to Obi Asika and Gbemi Olateru-Olagbegi in ‘We Rise: The Davido Story‘, puts so much hard work into his music, has been dominating headlines across Africa for more than a decade, just a few artistes of his generation can still command that kind of global attention.
When he started making music, all he wanted was to make beats and records for others in the background. He made a demo track for his cousin, but when the dude wouldn’t record the track, Davido decided to drop it himself. That was the song, ‘Back When’ featuring Naeto C.
From a teenager who just wanted to produce beats for others, Davido has become one of the most important music artistes out of Africa today as he constantly breaks streaming records.
In July 2020, Columbia Records UK announced that Davido’s 2019 album – ‘A Good Time’ has officially reached over 1 billion streams across all platforms, just a year after its release. This further cements his place as one of the most streamed African artistes.
At different times, many critics and even his peers in the Nigerian music industry have attributed his success to his background as a rich kid, but this notion has constantly been countered.
So what has been responsible for his staying power in a decade?
Top industry leaders made some revelations in ‘We Rise: The Davido Story’, a new documentary by Netng and the first of its kind about Davido.
“Whether or not you think it’s because he’s rich that he’s gotten to where he is. He hustles like he has no money, and rent is due today,” Gbemi Olateru-Olagbegi said in the new documentary that will be released on January 15, 2022.
The documentary romped through Davido’s journey from a superrich teenager trying to get the attention of the world with his music, to his struggles with his father who never wanted him to do music, turbulent days of controversies with the media and his peers in the industry, his support for rising music stars and people around him, as well as his recent globally-acclaimed fundraiser in celebration of his 29th birthday.
Obi Asika, CEO of Storm 360, whose nephew, Asa Asika, has been on Davido’s team for over a decade, said, “Nobody gave anything to David. That one, I can tell you for free.”
There is a whole lot more that has gone into maintaining Davido’s relevance.
Aside from being a very hardworking rich kid, Davido is also reinventing himself as a star of all seasons, dropping hits after hit as the season demands. Then there is the philanthropic side that has made him a springboard to success for other rising stars and many ordinary Nigerians.
Whatever bricks critics or even his peers in the industry threw at him for his ‘rich kid’ status, David used them to positively build himself, releasing even more hits and solidifying his superstar status.
Davido has maintained relevance in the last ten years and as he heads into the next decade of his career, he’s shown the world that he’s off to a good start. His recent birthday fundraiser confirms that.
His story and journey in the last decade are inspiring other rich kids to follow their passion, notwithstanding the criticisms.
The post #TheDavidoStory: How Davido has managed to stay on top in African music scene for a decade appeared first on Nigerian Entertainment Today.
Source: TheNet
