Oladapo Daniel Oyebanjo (born 9 June 1980), known professionally as D'banj ( ), is a
Nigerian
Nigerians or the Nigerian people are citizens of Nigeria or people with ancestry from Nigeria. The name Nigeria was derived from the Niger River running through the country. This name was allegedly coined in the late 19th century by British jo ...
singer, rapper, music executive, event host and television personality. He signed with American rapper
Kanye West
Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer and record producer. One of the most prominent figures in hip-hop, he is known for his varying musical style and polarizing cultural and political commentary. After ...
's record label
GOOD Music
GOOD Music (often stylized as G.O.O.D. Music; a backronym for Getting Out Our Dreams) is an American independent record label founded by rapper Kanye West in 2004. The label entered an exclusive long-term worldwide music distribution, distributi ...
to release his 2012 single "
Oliver Twist
''Oliver Twist; or, The Parish Boy's Progress'', is the second novel by English author Charles Dickens. It was originally published as a serial from 1837 to 1839 and as a three-volume book in 1838. The story follows the titular orphan, who, ...
", an uptempo dance fusion of
EDM and
Afrobeats
Afrobeats, not to be confused with Afrobeat or Afroswing, is an umbrella term to describe popular music from West Africa and the diaspora that initially developed in Ghana, Nigeria, and the UK in the 2000s and 2010s. Afrobeats is less of a st ...
for which he became best known. With record producer
Don Jazzy, he co-founded the record label
Mo' Hits Records
Mo'Hits Records (popularly called Mo'Hits) was a Nigeria-based music record label owned by D'banj and Don Jazzy. According to Nigeria's Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), Mo'Hits Records Limited was founded in 2006, signing D'banj as its first ...
. His stage name is a combination of his first name, Dapo, and his surname, Oyebanjo.
Early life
D'banj, also known as the Kokomaster or Bangalee, was born in
Zaria
Zaria is a List of Nigerian cities by population, metropolitan city in Nigeria, located at present time within four local government areas in Kaduna State. It serves as the capital of the Zazzau Emirate Council and is one of the original sev ...
, the northern part of Nigeria to a military officer father and a devoutly religious businesswoman mother from
Shagamu in
Ogun State. Dbanj has twins as siblings, Taiwo and Kehinde Oyebanjo.
D'banj's parents hoped he would follow in his father's footsteps and join the military, but D'banj turned to music instead being introduced to the harmonica by his late older brother, Femi Oyebanjo, who died in a plane crash at the age of seventeen.
D'banj's struggle for his parents' approval inspired his music, most notably on the album track, ''All Da Way'', from his debut album.
Work and music
2005: ''No Long Thing''
D'banj's debut album, ''
No Long Thing'', was released in 2005. It yielded several singles with ''Tongolo'' as the breakthrough lead single. It also provided his Koko Master persona, with the term, koko, taking on a variety of meanings. D'banj's debut led to collaborations with other artists, including
Dare Art Alade and Ikechukwu.
2006: ''Rundown Funk U Up''
D'banj's second album ''
Rundown Funk U Up
''RunDown Funk U Up'' is the second studio album by Nigerian recording artist D'banj. It was released by Mo' Hits Records in 2006. The album was produced by Don Jazzy, and supported by the singles "Why Me", " Do You Like the Koko? (Tongolo Remix) ...
'', which was released in 2006, yielded several singles including the club single, ''Tongolo (Remix)'', and the lead single ''Why Me?.''
2007–2008: ''Curriculum Vitae'' and ''The Entertainer''
In 2007, D'Banj's single koko was used by the PDP (ruling political party in Nigeria) as its campaign theme for the general elections.
D'banj also joined
Mo'Hits Records and its collective group, Mo' Hits Allstars (which included artists
Dr SID,
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 Omolara ...
, KaySwitch, and
D'Prince
Charles Enebeli (born 23 October 1986), known by his stage name D'Prince, is a Nigerian Grammy Awards, Grammy-67th Annual Grammy Awards, nominated music executive, singer, songwriter, entrepreneur, Promoter (entertainment), promoter, and philant ...
). December 2007 saw the release of the collective's debut album, ''Curriculum Vitae.''. It included singles, "Be Close To You", "Booty Call" and "Move Your Body", which was the lead single.
D'banj was featured in Ikechukwu's 2008 hit, "Wind Am Well".
July 2008 saw the release of D'banj's third album, ''
The Entertainer'', with the singles "Gbono Feli Feli", "Kimon", "Olorun Maje" and "Entertainer".
Mo'Hits/G.O.O.D. Music
In June 2011, D'banj was signed to
Kanye West
Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer and record producer. One of the most prominent figures in hip-hop, he is known for his varying musical style and polarizing cultural and political commentary. After ...
G.O.O.D Music record label as an artiste. On 9 June 2011, D'banj wrote on his Twitter account, @iamdbanj, "Just like yesterday, myself and my brother did Tongolo. 7 years later, Mo'Hits signs with GOOD Music. Best Birthday gift ever. God thank you."
In September 2016, it was announced D'banj was released from GOOD Music.
Mo'Hits break-up
After several months of speculation, producer, Don Jazzy confirmed via his Twitter account the breakup of Mo'Hits. After the break-up,
Don Jazzy,
D'Prince
Charles Enebeli (born 23 October 1986), known by his stage name D'Prince, is a Nigerian Grammy Awards, Grammy-67th Annual Grammy Awards, nominated music executive, singer, songwriter, entrepreneur, Promoter (entertainment), promoter, and philant ...
,
Dr SID 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 Omolara ...
started
Mavin Records
Mavin Records (also known as the Supreme Mavin Dynasty) is a Nigerian corporation and 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' Hits R ...
, while D'banj founded DB Records, and he signed his younger brother Kayswitch to the label alongside two producers, Jaysleek and Deevee.
Sony Entertainment deal
In December 2012, D'banj signed a mega deal with Sony. Speaking on the importance of the deal to Sony, the managing director of Sony Music Entertainment described the deal as a "Pan African multi-album deal with Sony Music's RCA Records. It also involves an exclusive management deal with Sony Music and strategic partner ROCKSTAR4000 for the continent. Add to that a multi-album, worldwide exclusive contract with emerging Nigerian singer-songwriter star Kayswitch, and a strategic partnership with D'Banj's Nigerian record label, DB Records".
2014
The forthcoming single "Bother You", inspired by the film ''
Half of a Yellow Sun
''Half of a Yellow Sun'' is a 2006 novel by Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. It became instantly successful after its publication; in the United States and Nigeria, it is widely read in high schools and middle schools. ''Half of a Y ...
'', was released on 7 April 2013, by Mi7 Records and D'banj's label, DKM Media.
In June 2014, D'banj introduced artists under his record label, which includes him, his younger brother Kay Switch, brothers MossKriss and Ralph Kriss, and
Tonto Dikeh and Ebeneztizzy.
2017
He released the album titled King Don Come, with guest features from the likes of
Gucci Mane
Radric Delantic Davis (born February 12, 1980), known professionally as Gucci Mane, is an American rapper. He is credited, along with fellow Atlanta-based rappers T.I. and Jeezy, with pioneering the hip hop subgenre trap music for mainstream a ...
,
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 Omolara ...
,
Harry Songs,
Bucie
Busisiwe Nolubabalo Nqwiliso (born March 10, 1987) is a South African R&B and house singer. Her 2014 single titled "Easy to Love" peaked at number 9 on EMA.
Early life and career
Early life
She was born in Kimberley and grew up in Khuma ...
,
Busiswa etc. in August. The album includes singles 'It's Not A Lie', 'El Chapo and his 2012 mega hit 'Oliver Twist'.
Live performances
In December 2010, the Mo' Hits All Stars brought Koko Concert to Lagos.
On 23 June 2012, D'banj performed at the
Hackney Weekend to celebrate the
2012 Summer Olympics
The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...
, which was headlined by
Jay-Z
Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American Rapping, rapper, businessman, and record executive. Rooted in East Coast hip-hop, he was named Billboard and Vibe's 50 Greatest Rappers of All Time, the ...
and
Rihanna
Robyn Rihanna Fenty ( ; born February 20, 1988) is a Barbadian singer, businesswoman, and actress. One of the List of music artists by net worth, wealthiest musicians in the world, List of awards and nominations received by Rihanna, her vario ...
. He performed alongside his friend and fellow
Universal Music Group
Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as Universal Music Group or Universal Music) is a Netherlands, Dutch–United States, American multinational Music industry, music corporation under Law of the Netherlands, ...
label mate,
Rita Ora
Rita Sahatçiu Ora (; born Rita Sahatçiu; 26 November 1990) is a British singer-songwriter, television personality, and actress. Born in Pristina, modern-day Kosovo, she rose to prominence when she featured on DJ Fresh's 2012 single, "Hot Rig ...
, on 30 August 2012 at the SCALA London Live Music, Clubs and Arts Venue to celebrate the release of her debut album ''
Ora''. He also performed at the AFCON 2013 closing ceremony held in South Africa. On 18 April 2015, D'banj performed at the Global Citizen Earth Day, a free concert on Capitol Hill (Washington Monument Grounds) for the 45th anniversary of Earth Day put on by the Global Poverty Project and the Earth Day Network.
Awards and accolades
D'banj has won several music awards, including the awards for ''Best African Act'' at the
MTV Europe Music Awards 2007,
''Artist of the Year'' at the
MTV Africa Music Awards 2009, Best International Act: Africa at the
2011 BET Awards, Best-selling African Artist at the
2014 World Music Awards, Evolution award at the MTV Africa Musical awards 2015.
D'banj's song "
Oliver Twist
''Oliver Twist; or, The Parish Boy's Progress'', is the second novel by English author Charles Dickens. It was originally published as a serial from 1837 to 1839 and as a three-volume book in 1838. The story follows the titular orphan, who, ...
", topped the African charts in 2011 and was a top 10 hit in
the UK singles chart in 2012, reaching No. 2 on the
UK R&B chart
Official Hip Hop and R&B Albums Chart
The UK Hip Hop and R&B Singles Chart and the UK Hip Hop and R&B Albums Chart (also known as The Official UK Hip Hop and R&B Charts, and previously the Top 40 Hip Hop and RnB Singles and the Top 40 Hip Hop and ...
.
Endorsements
With D'banj's first album came his first endorsement from an energy drink called Power Fist. In May 2013, D'banj was named the Bank of Industry (BOI) ambassador. In November 2013, D'banj re-signed a multi-million Naira deal with
Globacom, the company he parted ways with in 2010. In June 2014, D'Banj secured a deal with
Heritage Bank. In October 2014, D'banj was named the official African ambassador for
Beats by Dre. In February 2015, D'banj was named the official African ambassador for Ciroc Nigeria. In an exclusive story on
Tush Magazine Issue 11,
Banky W and Dbanj shed more light on how they became
Ciroc Ambassadors. In September 2015, D'banj was made the brand ambassador of SLOT, a popular mobile phone and electronic gadget retail outfit. Dbanj is now among the richest Afrobeats artists in Nigeria.
Humanitarian work
D'banj is the founder of the Koko Foundation for Youth and Peace Development. He was also Nigeria's first United Nations
Youth Ambassador for Peace. Dbanj is a
ONE campaign
ONE Campaign (styled as ONE) is an international, non-partisan, non-profit organization advocating for the investments needed to create economic opportunities and healthier lives in Africa. The campaigning organization uses data, grassroots ac ...
ambassador; he released the song "Cocoa Na Chocolate" in support of agriculture investments. 'Cocoa Na Chocolate' featured 18 other African artists and won Best African Collaboration at the
All Africa Music Awards in 2014.
In 2015, he was applauded by
World Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and Grant (money), grants to the governments of Least developed countries, low- and Developing country, middle-income countries for the purposes of economic development ...
Chief
Jim Yong Kim for using his music power and high celebrity status to bring attention to serious and critical issues in Africa, with a special focus on agriculture and poverty alleviation. Jim Yong Kim was quoted as saying, ''"I had the pleasure of meeting D'banj last month and seeing him perform. I'm thrilled he is the first artists to take part in our new Music4Dev series encouraging global artist to raise awareness about poverty and related issues."''
In 2015, D'banj released the video "Extraordinary" to raise awareness on gender equality and women's empowerment. World Bank endorsed the song as a song for women awareness.
In August 2016, D'banj's D'Kings Men Media partnered with MTN Nigeria and the Bank of Industry to launch THE CREAM PLATFORM, a creative talent platform that was set up to help discover young creative minds across Nigeria by just dialing a USSD code on a mobile phone. It is reported that the platform, as of December 2016, had over 2 million paying subscribers and has discovered hundreds of talents from the music category alone, with tens of music videos and millions of Naira DUCTOR SETT given out to winners.
Personal life
D'banj married Lineo Didi Kilgrow in June 2016. He announced the birth of their son, Daniel Oyebanjo III, in May 2017. The child drowned in June 2018.
In June 2020, after D'banj had posted to social media to "say no to rape," Seyitan Babatayo accused him of raping her in 2018, saying she wanted to "
allhim out on his hypocrisy."
Shortly thereafter, she went missing for two days, and while she was missing, posts made to her social media said the allegations had been a publicity stunt to support an upcoming D'banj single.
According to ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
'', she was found with help from the NGO Stand to End Rape (STER).
She said she'd been abducted by Nigerian police, who turned her over to D'banj's management team, who co-opted her social media and made the retraction posts.
D'banj denied the accusations, calling them "false allegations and lies from the pit of hell."
After several days, Babatayo issued a statement saying she and D'banj had agreed upon a "non-monetary" settlement, saying, "I just want my peace."
On 3 July 2020, D'banj sued Babatayo for N1.5 billion. Shortly thereafter, D'banj's former manager, Franklin Amudo, reported that Babatayo had told him D'banj had raped her the day after the alleged rape.
Controversies
On 7 December 2022, D'banj was arrested by the
Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) in connection with alleged fraud. The arrest came after D'banj repeatedly ignored invitations from the ICPC to provide an explanation regarding his involvement in the alleged diversion of funds earmarked for the N-Power project.
N-Power is a component of the
National Social Investment Program established by the administration of
Muhammadu Buhari
Muhammadu Buhari (born 17 December 1942) is a Nigerian politician who served as the president of Nigeria from 2015 to 2023. A retired Nigerian army major general, he was the military head of state of Nigeria from 31 December 1983 to 27 Augu ...
to address unemployment and enhance social development in
Nigeria
Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...
.
According to reports from Premium Times,
ICPC confirms arrest, detention of D’banj over alleged N-Power fraud
''Premiumtimesng'', December 2022/ref> D'banj was detained by ICPC operatives on 7 December 2022 after he was compelled to surrender himself at the agency's headquarters in Abuja
Abuja (; , ) is the capital city of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, strategically situated at the geographic midpoint of the country within the Federal Capital Territory (Nigeria), Federal Capital Territory (FCT). As the seat of the Federal G ...
. It was revealed that D'banj had evaded ICPC summons for several weeks, claiming prior international engagements before his arrest.
The allegations against D'banj suggest that he conspired with certain government officials to include ghost beneficiaries in the N-Power payment scheme, diverting funds intended for genuine beneficiaries into accounts linked to him. Investigations have traced the flow of funds to accounts associated with D'banj.
Following his arrest, D'banj underwent an extensive interrogation and was subsequently detained when his request for administrative bail was turned down by ICPC officials. The Guardian newspaper has reported that the anti-graft agency is considering pressing charges against D'banj for alleged fraud and misappropriation of funds once their investigation is concluded.
These legal issues and controversies have garnered significant attention, raising concerns about accountability and transparency within the N-Power project and the involvement of high-profile individuals in alleged financial misconduct.
Discography
Albums
Singles
Guest appearances
Selected videography
Awards and nominations
See also
* List of Nigerian musicians
* African hip hop
Hip hop music has been popular in Africa since the early 1980s due to widespread African American influence. In 1985, hip hop reached Senegal, a French-speaking country in West Africa. Some of the first Senegalese rappers were Munyaradzi Nhidza ...
* Nigerian hip hop
* BET Awards of 2011
References
External links
*
D'banj Bio Page
{{Authority control
Nigerian male rappers
21st-century male rappers
Nigerian songwriters
Nigerian pop singers
1980 births
Living people
Nigerian male musicians
Yoruba musicians
People from Zaria
GOOD Music artists
Nigerian hip-hop singers
21st-century Nigerian musicians
The Headies winners
Nigerian music industry executives
English-language singers from Nigeria
Yoruba-language singers of Nigeria
World Music Awards winners
Yoruba businesspeople
21st-century Nigerian businesspeople
MTV Europe Music Award winners
Nigerian Afrobeats musicians