"Oliver Twist" is a song by

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-songwriter

D'banj Oladapo Daniel Oyebanjo (born 9 June 1980), known professionally as D'banj ( ), is a Nigerians, Nigerian singer, rapper, music executive, event host and television personality. He signed with American rapper Kanye West's record label GOOD Music ...

. The track was first released in the United Kingdom on 11 May 2012, as the first single from DB Records' compilation album, '' D'Kings Men'' (2013) and D'banj's fourth studio album '' King Don Come'' (2017). For the chart week dated 26 May, "Oliver Twist" debuted at number nine on the UK Singles Chart—marking the musician's first chart appearance and first Nigerian song to ever debut on the chart. Lyrically, the song expresses D'banj's crave for more women, relating to how the fictional character ''

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, ...

'' asked for more gruel.

Track listing

Critical reception

Robert Copsey of

Digital Spy Digital Spy (DS) is a British-based entertainment, television and film website and brand and is the largest digital property at Hearst UK. Since its initial launch in 1999, Digital Spy has focused on entertainment news related to television pro ...

gave the song a positive review, stating:

As such, his first release on these shores is a confident debut. "I have a confession," he admits over a hypnotic, afrobeat-meets-hip-hop riff, before reeling off a list of famous ladies he wouldn't mind getting better acquainted with – including
Beyoncé Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and businesswoman. With a career spanning over three decades, she has established herself as one of the most Cultural impact of Beyoncé, ...
,
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 ...
and
Nicki Minaj Onika Tanya Maraj-Petty (born December 8, 1982), known professionally as Nicki Minaj ( ), is a Trinidadian rapper, singer, and songwriter. Regarded as the "Queen of Rap" and one of the most influential rappers of all time, she is noted for her ...
("her yansh is bigger," after all). Given it's near-impossible to resist the hip-shaking melody and bum-wobbling hooks, we can't imagine he'll have much trouble winning them over.

Music video

A music video, directed by Sesan Ogunro, to accompany the release of "Oliver Twist" was first released onto YouTube on 19 March 2012. The video itself runs for a total of three minutes and fifty-five seconds and sees the artist, D'banj, performing the track in an empty studio designed as a run down home. It is performed in the key of G♯ minor throughout the entire song. A member of D'banj's live set (David Vujanic) makes an appearance dressed as

, whilst the CEO Dancers (three female dancers) perform to the track. In August 2013, the music video surpassed 21.5 million views making it the Nigerian song with highest number of views on YouTube at the time. , it has more than 53 million views. The video features cameos from D'banj's

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 ...

label mates

Big Sean Sean Michael Leonard Anderson (born March 25, 1988), known professionally as Big Sean, is an American rapper. He met Kanye West as a teenager, and signed with his record label GOOD Music, an imprint of Def Jam Recordings in 2007. He gained popul ...

Pusha T Terrence LeVarr Thornton (born May 13, 1977), better known by his stage name Pusha T, is an American rapper. He rose to prominence as one half of the Virginia-based hip hop duo Clipse, which he formed with his older brother No Malice, Malice. M ...

producer

Hit-Boy Chauncey Alexander Hollis Jr. (born May 21, 1987), known professionally as Hit-Boy, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and record producer. He first signed with fellow producer Polow da Don in 2007 as in-house production staff for his l ...

and the label's founder

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 ...

; whilst Mike Dean,

Mannie Fresh Byron Otto Thomas (born March 20, 1969), better known by his stage name Mannie Fresh, is an American record producer, DJ and rapper from New Orleans, Louisiana. He is best known for his production work for Cash Money Records releases, as well b ...

, Bricka Bricka, Eddie Kadi,

Sneakbo Agassi Babatunde Odusina (born 25 July 1992), better known by his stage name Sneakbo, is a British rapper. His first song, " The Wave", peaked at number 48 on the UK Singles Chart and he has since released a number of top 40 hits, such as " Z ...

and Keisha Buchanan of

Sugababes The Sugababes are an English girl group composed of Mutya Buena, Keisha Buchanan, and Siobhán Donaghy. The lineup changed three times before returning to the original lineup in 2011. Formed in 1998 by Ron Tom, the manager of All Saints, ...

fame also make cameos.

Accolades

The music video for "Oliver Twist" won Most Gifted Male Video and Most Gifted Video of the Year at the 2012 Channel O Music Video Awards. The song won Song of the Year and was nominated for Best Pop Single at The Headies 2012. D'banj received the Best Male West Africa nomination at the 2012

Kora Awards The KORA All Africa Music Awards are music awards given annually for musical achievement in sub-Saharan Africa. The awards were founded in 1994 by Benin born businessman, Ernest Adjovi, after a discussion in Namibia with the country's President H ...

for Oliver Twist. Furthermore, the song was nominated in the Hottest Single of the Year category at the 2012 Nigeria Entertainment Awards. It was also nominated for World's Best Song and World's Best Video at the

2014 World Music Awards The 2014 World Music Awards was a music awards ceremony that was held on May 27, 2014, at the Salle des Etoiles in Monte Carlo, Monaco. It was the 22nd edition of the show since its start in 1989, and the first ceremony since 2010, after which i ...

Charts

Chart performance

"Oliver Twist" made its first chart appearance on the chart week dated 26 May 2012—where it debuted at number nine on the UK Singles Chart; as the second highest new entry after

The Saturdays The Saturdays are an English-Irish girl group based in London, England. The group formed during the summer of 2007 and has been on hiatus since 2014. The lineup consists of Frankie Bridge, Una Healy, Rochelle Humes, Mollie King, and Vanessa Whi ...

" 30 Days" (#7). The track also debuted at number two 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 ...

for the same charting week. "Oliver Twist" spent only one week inside the UK top 10, falling four places to number thirteen on its second charting week—and as of the week dated 20 August has spent thirteen consecutive weeks inside the top 75.

Certifications

Release history

References

{{Oliver Twist 2012 singles D'banj songs Sneakbo songs Song recordings produced by Don Jazzy Works based on Oliver Twist 2011 songs Mercury Records singles Number-one singles in Romania