David Adedeji Adeleke, popularly known as Davido or Omo Baba Olowo(OBO), is an American-born Nigerian singer, songwriter and record producer. He rose to stardom with his hit single ‘Dami Duro’.
Early life and education
On November 21, 1992, David Adeleke was born in Atlanta, Georgia. His father, Adedeji Adeleke, is a business mogul, while his mother, late Veronica Adeleke, was a university lecturer.
Davido is the youngest of five children and the second son. He had his secondary education at the British International School In Lagos, Nigeria.
He returned to the United States at 16 to pursue business administration at Oakwood University in Alabama.
While at Oakwood, Davido purchased musical equipment and began producing beats. He also formed the music group KB International with his cousins B-Red and Sina Rambo. The musician dropped out of Oakwood University to focus only on music and moved to London to improve his vocals.
In 2011, he returned to Nigeria and began releasing singles. After his father suggested it, he enrolled at Babcock University and graduated in 2015 with a first-class degree in music. His debut album, ‘Omo Baba Olowo,’ won him multiple nominations and awards.
Career
Shortly after returning to Nigeria in 2011, Davido released his debut single titled ‘Back When’. ‘Dami Duro’ followed the single. Work began on ‘Omo Baba Olowo’, his debut album published in 2012 and included a lot of hit singles. The album was a mixture of afrobeat and hip hop.
Davido worked with several great producers like Shizzi, Spelz, Malek Berry, etc. He also featured artists like Naeto C, Sina Rambo, B-Red, Ice Prince, 2Face Idono’s etc.
The album got many nominations, including a nomination for Album of the Year at the Headies 2013.
Success came very quickly for the musician as, over the years, he began to release some good songs that made hits in the music industry.
‘Gobe’ was released in February 2013; the song ranked second on the Premium Times list of top songs of 2013. His song ‘Skelewu’ was also released in 2013.
On August 18, 2013, Davido promoted ‘Skelewu’ by publishing a YouTube Jassy Generation-directed instructional dance video. An announcement of a ‘Skelewu’ dancing competition preceded the video’s release.
2014 was an excellent year for the musician as he released another hit single titled ‘Aye’. Clarence Peters directed the video of the song. Also, that year, he collaborated with South African musician Mafikizolo on a song titled ‘Tchelete (Goodlife)’.
He also collaborated with other musicians like Lola Rae, Sarkodie, Tiwa Savage and Diamond Platinumz on a song titled Africa Rising, an initiative of DStv to inspire Africans to partake in community-based projects.
Davido is the founder of Davido Music Worldwide (DMW). DMW was founded in 2016 and currently has artists like Mayorkun, Dremo, and Peruzzi under the record label.
He has also signed many endorsement deals. He is the brand ambassador to AXE, Travelbeta, Pepsi, etc.
In 2012, he signed an endorsement deal with MTN. The endorsement deal was reported to have cost about N30 million. He was unveiled as the face of the MTN Pulse.
He was also signed by Guinness Nigeria on October 24, 2013, and played at the company’s ‘World of More Concert,’ among other notable Nigerian musicians such as Olamide, Wizkid, and Tiwa Savage, D’banj, and others.
He secured an endorsement contract with Infinix Mobile, a Hong Kong-based smartphone company, on May 9, 2018.
Davido songs
Davido has released several hit songs, which have won him national and international awards and recognitions. Here is a list of his songs:
- Aye
- Back when
- Dami Duro
- All of you
- Bad,Baddo Baddest ft Olamide and Falz da bad guy
- Skelewu
- Gobe
- Owo ni Koko
- Fans mi
- Assurance
- Like dat
- Fia
- Fall
- If
- Flora my Flawa
- One milli
- Jowo
- FEM
Here is a list of his albums
- Omo Baba Olowo (2012)
- The Baddest (2015)
- A Good Time (2019)
- A Better Time (2020)
Awards and recognitions
Davido is one of the most awarded musicians in Nigeria. He has been nominated and has won several awards both nationally and internationally.
Here is a list of his awards:
- Best Newcomer Awards at the Kora Awards 2012.
- Next Rated Artiste, Headies Awards 2012.
- Best New Act of the Year, Nigeria Entertainment Awards,2012.
- BET Awards for Best International Act 2014.
- Best Male Artiste of the Year, MTV Africa Music Awards, 2014
- Musician of the Year at the MTV Africa Awards 2014.
- Artist of the Year, Headies 2014
- Artist of the year, Headies 2018
Davido and Chioma
As of today, Davido is not yet married. He has three children with three women.
He is engaged to his long time girlfriend, Chioma Rowland, who is the mother of his last child and only son.
Since 2020, the musician and his partner have been in an on-again, off-again relationship. He allegedly cheated on her and fathered another kid with another woman, though he has yet to admit the charges publicly.
Davido and Wizkid
Davido and Wizkid have had a very bad relationship. No one knows for sure when the beef started, but some say it must have been in 2011 when both musicians began their careers.
In his interview with Ebuka, Davido stated that the beef with Wizkid was not from his end. He also said that he believes that their relationship turned sour because Wizkid saw him as a competition.
In January 2022, Davido and Wizkid were seen hugging in a viral video posted on social media. The video threw their fans into a frenzy as they were excited that their favourites had reconciled.
Davido’s dead friends
In the space of four years, the musician has lost seven of his close friends and crew members.
Below are the seven friends of the musician he lost in the span of four years:
- Tagbo: Tagbo died in 2017. The causes of his death were unknown.
- Dj Olu: Few weeks after Tagbo’s death, Dj Olu was found dead in an abandoned BMW parked in a garage. He was the son of the former governor of Ogun state Dapo Abiodun.
- Chime: He was suspected to have died from substance abuse. He was a crew member of Davido.
- Ahmed
- Tunji: Tunji was Davido’s bodyguard who died in 2020.
- Obama DMW: Obama was one of the musician’s managers. He died of heart failure in 2021.
- Fortune Shotz: Fortune was David’s personal photographer. He mysteriously died in September 2021.
Davido net worth
The musician, songwriter and record producer. He has a net worth of $40 million, making him one of the richest musicians in Nigeria.
Conclusion
Davido is a talented musician, songwriter and entertainer. He is also loved by many. The musician is also a philanthropist at heart as he loves to give back to his country. In 2021, the musician tasked his friends to donate some amount to him. He realized N200 million. He added N50 million and then donated the N250 million to orphanages across the nation.
