MAYORKUN: Davido’s best gamble in four years
Be it Banky
W and Wizkid, ID Cabasa and Olamide, or Don Jazzy/D’Banj and Wande Coal,
several artists in the Nigerian music industry started out with an experienced
and trusted adviser that showed them the way.
And such is
the story of David ‘Davido’ Adeleke and Adewale ‘Mayorkun’ Mayowa Emmanuel.
In 2016, a
24-year-old Davido took a gamble with a 22-year-old to begin his own imprint,
Davido Music Worldwide. At the time, the move was seen as a gamble because
Davido, who had made a name for himself and dumped his family record label,
HKN, was all out to do everything his way and according to his rules.
Four years
down the line and it won’t be wrong to say Mayorkun remains Davido’s best
gamble in the last four years.
The Meet
In 2015,
Davido released a hit song, ‘The Money,’ featuring Olamide. The song inspired
Mayorkun and he decided to do a cover of the song. The cover song video caught
Davido’s attention on Twitter in February 2016. An intrigued Davido decided to
follow Mayorkun on the microblogging site after which he made contact with him.
Davido asked if the singer, songwriter, and pianist could do more than play the
keyboard and that was how the story of a budding singer began. After sending
some of his works to Davido and a few details agreed, Davido announced Mayorkun
as the first music act on his Davido Music Worldwide.
Davido celebrates his late mum as he shares her photo online
Making music
from a house of movies
It’s no
longer news that Mayorkun’s parents are top players on the Nigerian movie scene
– the Yoruba speaking arm of the industry.
Mayorkun was
born on March 23, 1994, into the household of popular actress, Toyin Adewale
and her husband, Sunday Adewale. He is the first child of three children of the
entertainers. Mayorkun grew up watching his father and mother on television
until his dad decided to take a back seat and concentrate more on production
and directing.
His parents
were Christian devotees and Mayorkun, alongside his siblings, were nurtured in
the way of Christ. At a young age, Mayorkun had joined the choir where he
learned the rudiments of music. Despite his brilliance in singing and playing
the piano, Mayorkun’s parents insisted he had to complete his education before
being given the opportunity to do music professionally. To this end, Mayorkun
graduated with a degree in accounting from the University of Lagos.
“It makes me
proud and I am happy about it. I never knew Mayowa will go into music. He used
to be a junior choir master while in the choir, but never knew he would go this
far because he has always been a very quiet, easy-going person. He is not a
loud guy, but you know God’s ways are not our ways, so when he started, I
became very happy and proud of him. Initially, I was very afraid, I didn’t even
give him my blessing, I said I have been in the entertainment industry for a
long and I know what it entails, so I didn’t support it. It was his father who
said Toyin, let’s give him a chance, he studied banking in school. So, I was
like why not go and work with your certificate then do music alongside but my
husband convinced me. So, we decided to give him our blessings, and today to
God be the glory,” Mayorkun’s mum said about her son’s success in an interview.
From
counting money to making money
Before
grabbing fame and fortune, Mayorkun had a job working with a bank. He was
working his 9-5 with the hope of working through the ranks to become a branch
director. However, his decision to do a cover of Davido’s song after plans to
quit the job and seek another changed his story. After joining the lavish 30
Billion Gang led by Davido, Mayorkun released his first single, ‘Eleko’.
Mayorkun’s
first release under Davido’s DMW proved that Davido had hit the jackpot and was
in for the long haul. Eleko’s video proved Davido’s belief in Mayorkun was
neither a fluke nor one chance. The music video gathered a million views in the
first 10 days.
He went on
to release singles like Yawa, Sade, Che Che, and Mama. In October 2018, he
released singles “Posh” and “Fantasy” featuring Olu Maintain in anticipation of
his first studio album titled “The Mayor of Lagos”.
Two years
after signing with Davido and releasing over six chart-topping songs, Mayorkun
released The Mayor of Lagos on November 16, 2018, to announce his entry. On
December 1, 2018, the album debuted on the Billboard World Albums chart,
peaking at number 15.
In 2020,
while many Nigerian music acts were battling with the adverse effect of
COVID-19 and unsure of how or when their works will be released as a result of
the lockdown, Mayorkun pulled a surprise on his peers, colleagues, and
contemporaries with an Elongated Play entitled ‘The Geng.’
With nine
music awards including Headies Next rated, Mayorkun proved to be a brand worth
placing a bet on. 2020 saw him release top chatting songs that include Geng, Of
Lagos, and Betty Butter.
His recent
collaboration on Davido’s The Best proves that Davido is smiling to the bank
with Mayorkun on his side four years after signing the dotted lines in their
music contract.
Unlike the
incidents with his cousins, B-Red and Sina Rambo, which saw him dumping HKN,
Davido has continued to count his blessings after signing Mayorkun.
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Ikeduru movie association is true and real association which have come to stay