A popular Nigerian music icon Davido Adeleke (aka Davido), has spoken on why he returned to school and revealed how Don Jazzy and D’banj inspired him to be a singer.
The artiste, who has been on a break from social media for months, made this known in a recent Instagram Live chat with Grammy Museum.
He said: “In the early stage of my career, I was like a one-man-band. For my first single, I made the beat, and recorded the song myself. I mixed and mastered Dami duro myself. When I was getting bigger, I could no longer do everything myself. Now, I have producers and songwriters who I work with. I now believe in collective efforts.
“The business side of everything is important. Music is just about 30 or 40 per cent. Going back to school helped me concentrate. Sometimes in life, you just have to sacrifice. It was something I had to do for my father.”
Speaking further, the Atlanta-born singer said Don Jazzy and D’banj inspired him to do African music.
He said: “Coming from Atlanta and just hanging around them inspired me. I remember seeing them with Jay-Z and Kanye West in a room. They had a lot to do with me wanting to do music. My father has also been a mentor.”
Asked why he didn’t pursue the family business like his siblings, the Omo Baba Olowo crooner said, “It wasn’t that I wanted to rebel; I was just in love with music. I could not concentrate on something else. I was slacking in school and other things I wasn’t supposed to slack in because of my love for music. I had to fight for it. It’s what I knew I was destined to do. I was learning how to record, so I was slacking in other things. Music took over me.”
