Last week, while watching musicals on YouTube, I was presented with one of Davido’s musical hits – Assurance by the YouTube Playlist. I smiled when the video got to the part where Davido says – biggy biggy heavy heavy. My smile was short-lived when I thought about the present predicament of the damsel who the song was written about and for. But as I continued to listen, I started enjoying the rhythm and the music again and it hit me how much Davido has contributed to contemporary Nigerian music. Consistency and longevity are arguably the rarest commodities in the entertainment industry. There are so many one-hit wonders in the industry that anyone who has lasted 10 solid years is worth giving resounding accolades.

For Davido, it has been a roller-coaster of hits. From his debut single in 2011 to his 2021 offerings, Davido has been nothing short of phenomenal, to say the least. He has so many hits under his belt that you can almost start thinking that making hits is easy until you think of many musicians who have only one hit to their credit. His appearance and performance in Eddie Murphy’s Coming To America 2 is a testament to his growing profile after 10 years. His Gold album certification in the US places him in the stratosphere where very few African musicians can be found. At the end of the Assurance musical video, I realized that Davido is not appreciated enough for his musical achievements and contributions.

Some of us may want to attribute his successes to his family’s wealth. But this is a big lie. Coming from a wealthy family is often a liability for success in music. Being a rich kid is often an impediment to working hard and being consistent. Two traits that Davido exemplifies. For those who do not know, it is more difficult to achieve the kind of success Davido has achieved if your financial future is secured by your patents. This is why you can hardly see any rich kid being super talented and consistent like Davido. Often, they lack the drive and skills to even sustain a 3-year career as an artist and Davido has done it for 10 years, proving all distractors wrong. I salute his talent and tenacity. I salute his brotherly heart in carrying other artists along in his journey to stardom. And I wish him more decade of hit singles and albums.

Ata Ukuta

Editor, www.towncryyers.com