Nigerian artiste Davido features on the latest cover The Native Magazine as he speaks about his deal with Sony Music, how he met his manager Asa Asika, squashing the beef with Wizkid and more.
On his EP Son of Mercy and making music his own way: I knew myself. I was like, ‘this is not Davido’. My career has always been on fire at all times, [till then] there was never a time that I didn’t have a hit out, and that time I didn’t have a hit. So I called Sony up, and I told them to look, you have to let me do what I want to do.
That’s what inspired Back to Basics. First, I had to stop making the music that they (SONY) wanted me to make. So I came back to Nigeria to record a couple of songs. That’s when I recorded ‘IF’ with Tekno. It’s funny. Until then, Tekno used to always tell me “David I get beat o, I get beat o.” This life.
On working with manager Asa Asika: He had hands in the industry and he was young like me. So I told him, “oya now, come and manage me.” He started taking me around with him. I remember one of first places we went was Ice Prince’s house. Asa is actually the one that introduced me to Wiz officially back then, like ‘this is my guy’.
On his public image as Omo Baba Olowo: It’s made things harder for me! They always have this feeling that like…[because] your daddy has money. In my head, I’m like, I didn’t choose my Dad, I am his son. I came into the world like anyone else.
On what ended the war between him and Wizkid: It just got to a point where we just thought, this shit is getting old. I mean, it got physical between our camps. We just wanted to make the relationship mutual. He has three kids, I have two kids. I’ve travelled a lot, I have experienced so much more in life, I have two artists that are doing well. Like, this shit is old bro, we’re not getting any younger.