Ayoleyi Hanniel Solomon (born 6 December 1993), better known by his stage name Reekado Banks, is a

Nigerian Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was taken from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jour ...

singer and songwriter. He signed with

Mavin Records Mavin Records (also known as the Supreme Mavin Dynasty) is a Nigerian music corporation record label founded by record producer and recording artist Don Jazzy on 8 May 2012. The label's inception came to fruition following the closure of Mo' Hit ...

in 2014 and left the label in 2018. He went by the stage name Spicy before his record deal with Mavin Records. Reekado Banks was declared Rookie of the Year at

The Headies 2014 The Headies 2014 was the ninth edition of The Headies. It took place on 14 December 2014, at the Eko Hotel and Suites in Victoria Island, Lagos. Themed "Feel the Passion", the show was hosted by Toke Makinwa and Basketmouth. It was initially sc ...

, and won the controversial Next Rated award at

The Headies 2015 The Headies 2015 was the 10th edition of The Headies. It was held on January 1, 2016, at the Landmark Events Centre in Victoria Island, Lagos. Themed "Flip the Script", the event was hosted by Bovi and Kaffy. It was previously scheduled to hol ...

. His debut studio album ''Spotlight'' was released on 1 September 2016; it debuted at number 10 on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' World Albums chart.

Life and career

Reekado Banks is the last child of a music-loving family. His father is a pastor from

Ondo State Ondo State ( yo, Ìpínlẹ̀ Oǹdó) is a state in southwestern Nigeria. It was created on 3 February 1976 from the former Western State. It borders Ekiti State to the north, Kogi State to the northeast, Edo State to the east, Delta State to t ...

and his mother is a caterer. He grew up in a disciplinarian setting due to both of his parents being pastors. He completed his secondary school at the age of 14, and started recording his first set of songs in 2008. His elder brother produced all of his earlier songs and tutored him on the rudiments of singing, writing and producing. He derived the stage name Reekado Banks by combining the meanings of the two names; the former part of his stage name translates to "strong ruler", while the latter part loosely translates to "wealth". In 2014, Reekado Banks graduated from the

University of Lagos The University of Lagos, popularly known as UNILAG, is a public research university located in Lagos, Nigeria and was founded in 1962. UNILAG is one of the first generation universities in Nigeria and is ranked among the top universities in th ...

with a degree in history and strategic study. He has cited

Don Jazzy Michael Collins Ajereh (born 26 November 1982), known professionally as Don Jazzy, is a Nigerian record producer. He is the founder and the CEO of Mavin Records. Don Jazzy was co-owner of the now-defunct Mo' Hits Records record label with D'b ...

, 2face Idibia,

DJ Jimmy Jatt Oluwaforijimi "Jimmy" Adewale Amu (born October 15, 1966), professionally referred to by his stage name DJ Jimmy Jatt, is a Nigerian disc jockey who is revered as one of the pioneering hip hop DJs in Nigeria. He started out his music career as a ...

, Olamide and M.I as his key musical inspirations.

Mavin Records deal and artistry

His record deal with Mavin Records came as a result of his brother submitting some of his songs to the label in an online talent search. Reekado Banks got signed to Mavin Records after his entries were selected from over 5000 entries. In an interview with the ''

National Mirror The ''National Mirror'' is a daily newspaper published in Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Af ...

'', he said his brother submitted his songs and communicated with the label on his behalf without his initial consent. Reekado Banks also told the ''National Mirror'' that he is a versatile artist who makes music with the thought that humans are different and have different tastes.

2014–present: Singles and Mavin Records departure

Reekado Banks premiered the single "Turn It Up" on 21 February 2014, which coincided with the day he signed with Mavin Records. The song features

Tiwa Savage Tiwa Savage (born 5 February 1980) is a Nigerian singer-songwriter and performing artist. Born in Isale Eko, she relocated to London at the age of 11 for her secondary education. Five years later, she began her music career doing backup voc ...

and was released as his first official single under Mavin Records. Reekado Banks was featured on the critically acclaimed song "

Dorobucci "Dorobucci" is a song by The Mavins, a collective composed of Don Jazzy, Tiwa Savage, Dr SID, Reekado Banks, Korede Bello, Di'Ja and D'Prince. Released on May 1, 2014, it received generally positive reviews from music critics. Positive remarks w ...

", alongside

Korede Bello Oluwakorede Bello (born 29 February 1996) is a Nigerian singer and songwriter. He signed a record deal with Mavin Records in 2014. Bello is best known for his hit single " Godwin", a semi-gospel and pop song which became a national anthem and t ...

Di'Ja Hadiza Blell, now Hadiza Blell-Olo, better known by her stage name Di'Ja, is a Nigerian singer. She is currently signed to Mavin Records. In 2009, she released her first single "Rock Steady", which was nominated for Best Urban/R&B Single at th ...

Dr SID Sidney Onoriode Esiri (born 1 May 1980), commonly known as Dr SID, is a Nigerian singer. Early life Dr SID is from Delta State, he was born and raised in Lagos. His mother is a fashion designer and his father, Justus Esiri, is an actor.

and

D'Prince Charles Enebeli (born 23 October 1986), better known by his stage name D'Prince, is a Nigerian Afropop singer. He is the founder and the CEO of Jonzing World, an entertainment company he founded in 2019. Early life Charles Enebeli was born in ...

. Reekado Banks also worked with some of the aforementioned artists to release three collaborative singles: "Adaobi", "Arise" and "Looku Looku". On 13 February 2015, he released the Don Jazzy-produced song "Katapot". It was alleged to be a diss track towards

D'banj Oladapo Daniel Oyebanjo (born 9 June 1980), better known by his stage name D'banj, is a Nigerian singer and rapper and the founder of Mo' Hits Records with producer Don Jazzy. He has won several music awards, including the awards for ''Best Af ...

and

Wande Coal Oluwatobi Wande Ojosipe (born 18 October 1985), popularly known as Wande Coal, is a Nigerian singer and songwriter. Early life Wande Coal was born on 18 October 1985 in Lagos Island, Lagos state, Nigeria, to Chief Ibukun Olufunto and Omolar ...

. In February 2015, Don Jazzy debunked the allegations in a series of tweets. While speaking to '' Vanguard Newspaper'', Reekado Banks said he created "Katapot" for his fans. In July 2015, Nigerian telecommunications company

Globacom Globacom Limited, commonly known as Glo (Global communication), is a Nigerian multinational telecommunications company founded on 29 August 2003 by Mike Adenuga. As of June 2018, the company employs more than 3,500 people worldwide. Overview ...

signed Reekado Banks to an endorsement deal. On 7 December 2018, he announced his departure from Mavins Records after 5 years. He also announced the launch of his independent outfit Banks Music. In September 2019, he sacked his elder brother, Temi Solomon as his manager. When asked the reason he did that, he said: "It was just next level dealings, I wanted to get somewhere else, the vision became a lot farther, like I saw farther than I used to see and I just needed somebody that’ll see as much, most especially someone that’s been there with other people (artists) but me and my brother are cool". After being away with no hit songs Reekado Banks came back in 2021 with a brand new tune titled "Ozumba Mbadiwe".

Discography

Studio albums

*''Spotlight'' (2016) Extended Plays *'' Off the Record'' (2020) *''OTR, Vol. 2'' (2021) *''Ozumba Mbadiwe Remix EP'' (2022)

Selected singles

References

External links

Reekado Banks Bio at MavinRecords.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Banks, Reekado 1993 births Living people Musicians from Lagos Nigerian male singer-songwriters University of Lagos alumni Nigerian hip hop singers The Headies winners English-language singers from Nigeria Yoruba-language singers 21st-century Nigerian male singers