David Adedeji Adeleke is a singer, songwriter, and record producer who is well-known for his unique styles in Afropop, Amapiano, and Afrobeat music.
David, also known by his stage name Davido, was born in Atlanta, Georgia, and raised in Lagos, Nigeria, on November 21, 1992.
He is the youngest of five siblings. Davido lost his mother when he was just five years old, and he was raised by his father, Adedeji Adeleke, a Nigerian billionaire, businessman, and the President of Adeleke University.
Davido credits the freedom his father gave him as a key factor that allowed him to carve out his own lane in music.
Adedeji studied Business Administration at Oakwood University, but in 2011, he dropped out to pursue his music career full-time.
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After four years of exploring the music industry and fully embracing his talent, he decided to fulfill his father’s wish, went back to school, and changed his studies to a music-related course, and he earned a degree from Babcock University.
He started his music career as part of the KB International group in America; his single launch Back When established him as an artist of interest in the music domain.
Significant fame came in 2011 when he released another song, Dami Duro, the second single from his Omo Baba Olowo album.
Some of his singles include Dami Duro, Gobe, Skelewu, Aye, If, Fall, FIA, Assurance, Blow My Mind, Risky, Jowo, among others.
Davido is known for blending West African rhythms with modern pop production, creating a distinctive Afropop sound.
In the course of his music journey, he has done epic collaborations with notable artists like Chris Brown in Titanium and Shopping Spree, Omahlay, Odum odublvck, Chike, Victoria Monet, Trinidad, Nicki Minaj, Adenkule Gold, Popcan, Summer Walker, Aisha, Musa Keys, Young Thug, and others.
At the 17th Headies Awards 2025 he won Digital Artiste of the Year, at the 2025 National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), he won Outstanding International Song for his collaboration with Chris Brown, Unavailable together with Musa Keys.
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The 2022 Headies Awards, he was named the best Digital Artiste of the Year and Humanitarian of the Year, Headies Artiste of the Year, Headies awards for songs like If, Aye among others.
He is considered one of the most important Afrobeats artists of the 21st century and, along with Burna Boy and Wizkid, is credited with the worldwide popularization of the genre.
As one of the most influential artists, Davido is seen as a cultural ambassador for Nigeria and a prominent voice for human rights in Africa.
He is best known to German-speaking countries as the co-interpreter of Hayya Hayya (Better Together) as the first song on the soundtrack of the 2022 World Cup.
As a fast-rising artist who has made numerous sacrifices to reach the top, Davido’s work is being acknowledged all over the world. He was recently selected as the only African artist who will perform at Coachella, the world’s biggest music festival in the United States of America (USA), in 2026.
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Photo by Naira metrics
