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Davido’s Song ‘Fall’ Takes Over Radio Stations In The US

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Eniola Olayemi

 

Nigerian music star Davido has not just made great waves in the Nigerian music industry but has also hit the US music market as his song Fall is reportedly taking over radio stations in the United States of America and the song is described as one of the biggest to ever come out of Africa. This is according to a report by Rolling Stone. Davido’s song Fall even ought to have reached greater heights in the country, according to the report.

The Nigerian style of music known as Afrobeats has quietly entranced a large swathe of the world’s population. “Pretty much every song on pop radio [in the U.K. now] is sort of a Mr. Eazi-style, chill, afrobeats [track],” the producer Riton told Rolling Stone last year. But Nigerian singers have not yet established a foothold stateside, despite well-received, afrobeats-dusted singles from established stars like Drake and Janet Jackson.

So it’s unusual that “Fall,” a springy, 19-month-old track from the Nigerian singer Davido, is currently gaining traction on the airwaves. The growth has been gradual: 482 plays to date, spread across 36 stations, according to Nielsen BDS, which tracks radio activity. BDS reports that four new stations added “Fall” into rotation last week.

 

Those are admittedly not huge numbers — for comparison’s sake, Post Malone’s new single “Wow” grew by 1,700 plays last week alone. But listeners who hear “Fall” are scrambling to find their phones: It was one of the Top 100 most Shazam’d singles in America this week. In New York City, “Fall” was a Top 10 record on Shazam. And in Atlanta, another crucial market, only two tracks were getting more Shazam activity than Davido’s.

 

Eliciting that level of interest in America is no small feat for an African singer. Columbia signed “Pana,” a 2016 single from Tekno, but wasn’t able to transform it into a U.S. hit. RCA signed Wizkid, the guest on Drake’s “One Dance,” but hasn’t been able to get a hit either. (RCA is also working with Davido now.) Burna Boy, another Nigerian singer with impressive talent, is now affiliated with Atlantic, but his “Rock Your Body” didn’t reach a wide audience in America. That has nothing to do with the music. “Pana” and “Rock Your Body” are both indelible polyrhythmic pop songs, wonderfully weightless next to the lead-footed trap that currently dominates both rap and pop radio in America.

But the machinery that creates hits in the U.S. remains conservative, even in the supposedly “new” era brought on by streaming. Nowhere is this more true than at radio, which throws its still-considerable weight behind only a tiny number of tracks — “A Top 40 radio station is playing five songs 120 times a week every week,” according to one radio insider — and rarely takes risks on music that doesn’t align with seemingly-ancient-if-not-totally-incomprehensible norms.

Mainstream “urban” radio usually won’t play Latin trap next to American trap, even if the same producers worked on both tracks, or pivot from hard hip-hop into soft R&B. Meanwhile, pop radio tries hard to ignore viral rap records, which programmers characterize as “pretty extreme,” in favor of bizarre but ostensibly more palatable concoctions by Panic! at the Disco or Marshmello.

Even some Top 40 programmers are confused by this tendency: “I don’t know when everybody’s gonna get it through their heads that we can’t just keep forcing these pop songs that nobody likes down everybody’s throat,” Nathan Graham told Rolling Stone last year.

 

Radio also depends on a favor system of sorts: Artists play station concerts, stop by for interviews and record drops to help get their music onto the air.

 

This is costly for artists without American passports. “To work the U.S. is big money — even getting music onto radio in New York alone might cost you upwards of $100 or $200 grand,” the Nigerian star Mr. Eazi explained to Rolling Stone last year. That’s another reason why, “at the end of the day, nobody has properly broken an African act in the U.S.”

 

It’s too early to tell if Davido can establish a new path from Nigeria to the American airwaves — his team only recently started “attacking US radio properly,” according to an email from the singer’s manager, Asa Asika. But there’s no denying that when listeners hear Davido’s music, they are immediately compelled to figure out who sings it.

 

And that’s not just the case with “Fall.” This week New Yorkers were also trying to determine who steals the show on local rapper Casanova’s new single “2am” (Shazaming Top 25). Surprise — it’s Davido. He is also the artist behind the 2017 track “If,” which is Shazaming Top 50 in New York.

 

DaVido’s success appears to be a boon for other Nigerian artists as well. Afro B’s “Drogba (Joanna)” was even higher than “Fall” on New York Shazam this week. If more radio programmers are willing to give these artists a chance, they may be pleasantly surprised by the results.

The ‘Dami Duro’ crooner might not be everyone’s favorite but he is sure making us proud, don’t you think?

 

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GAC Motor Nigeria Pioneers Celebration of Funke Akindele’s Hallmark Movie ‘A Tribe called Judah’

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AJAGBE ADEYEMI TESLIM
SPONSORED BY: H&H

On the 7” of February 2024, the giants of Filmmaking in the Nigerian Entertainment Industry gathered at the world class GAC Motor G-Style Showroom to celebrate the monumental success of Funke Akindele’s latest film, “A Tribe called Judah.”

GAC Motor Nigeria, leading automobile brand partnered with Filmone, Nigeria’s biggest film distribution business for this exclusive event aptly titled “A Toast to Funke Akindele; with top Nollywood actors and Industry legends such as Sola Sobowale, lyabo Ojo, Yvonne Jegede, Bisola Ayieola, Enyinna Nwigwe, Timini Egbuson, Adduni Ade, others and the celebrant her self Funke Akindele In attendance.

The highlight of the event was the presentation of a brand new GAC GS4 Luxury SUV to Funke Akindele by GAC Motor in recognition of her outstanding success at the Box office for her highest grossing movie which generated a staggering 1.2 Billion Naira in revenue.

Speaking at the event, Jubril Arogundade the General Manager CIG Motors Nigeria franchise owners of GAC Motor in Nigeria said “we are celebrating an icon Funke Akindele tonight for her excellence and this moment here serves as a reflection for all of us at CIG Motors and reminds us of the power of an excellent spirit, which has been our key goal in running our business.

We have partnered with people and corporations to transcend relationships beyond just business to showcase the power of collaboration, art and creativity in bringing a people together for one common purpose.

This is part of the reason we are taking over the automobile industry in Nigeria, our Market share, our outstanding products and our partnerships and collaborations speak to our excellent spirit.”

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AFRIMA, PMAN, MPAN, RELPI, AMAMN, Others Hold 2nd Emergency Summit on The Nigerian Music Industry Monday, Feb 12

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AJAGBE ADEYEMI TESLIM
SPONSORED BY: H&H

in line with its commitment to finding further lasting solutions to critical challenges in the music industry, all is set as the All Africa Music Awards- AFRIMA Music Business Summit in partnership with the Performing Musicians Employers Association of Nigeria (PMAN), Record Label Proprietors Initiative (RELPI), Association of Music Artist Managers of Nigeria (AMAMN) and Music Publishers Association of Nigeria (MPAN) holds the 2nd emergency summit of stakeholders on Monday, February 12, 2024.

The 2nd summit is geared towards refining and consolidating the policy recommendations by the designated 4-man legal team.

The summit, which focuses on the rebirth of the music, entertainment, arts, culture, and hospitality sector/industry in Nigeria commences at 6:00 PM (Nigerian time) and takes place virtually via Zoom.

According to the President of the All Africa Music Awards, AFRIMA, Mike Dada, Nigerian Music industry stakeholders expected to be in attendance include musicians/artistes, record labels, A&R, producers, promoters, artiste’s managers, brands, songwriters, DJs & video vixens, video directors, equipment production and rental companies, publishing companies, streaming service companies, entertainment lawyers, royalty companies, choreographers/dancers, entertainment/music journalists and media, culture and music enthusiast, other supporting professionals: cameramen, editors, make-up, hairstylist, costumiers, among others.

Dada, who described the first emergency summit as very symbolic and fruitful, expressed optimism that the outcome of the meeting would soon manifest and would be appreciated by entertainment stakeholders not only in Nigeria but in other African countries and those in the diaspora.

PMAN President, Pretty Okafor said the music stakeholders meeting is necessary as it is aimed at encouraging continuous education and engagement of sectoral bodies on roles, responsibilities, obligations, and benefits to the internal and external players in the music industry.

“It is very necessary for all players within the music ecosystem, especially the artistes to join relevant organisations to further guarantee and protect them and their crafts,” Okafor stated.

Also, Chinedu Chukwuji, who leads Record Label Proprietors Initiative (RELPI)’s efforts in ensuring there’s a conducive environment for the recording industry in Nigeria to thrive said the Summit would further provide a collective voice for the Nigerian recording industry on issues of policy, protection and enforcement of the intellectual property rights of its members, and engagement with commercial music users, regulators, government, trade associations, etc. in furthering the interests of its members.

The first Emergency Meeting of the Nigerian Music Industry with the theme, ‘Identification of Internal and External Regulatory Mechanisms to Smoothen the Working Relationship among Various Stakeholders and Subgroups in the Music Industry’ was held on the 1st of October 2023.

Among far-reaching resolutions and action plans adopted at the Summit included participants agreeing that while legislation is the cornerstone upon which a successful and sustainable music industry is built, there is a need for well-crafted laws and regulations that can provide a stable framework for the industry, protect the rights of artistes, creators, record labels and promote investment, and foster a vibrant music ecosystem.

Participants also called for a legal framework that would institutionalize minimum entry requirements for players in the industry, including musicians and record labels to discourage quackery, mediocrity, and substandardization in the music ecosystem.

At the first Summit, over 70 industry players who were in attendance included veteran music producer and CEO Kennis Communications, Dr Kenny Ogungbe, AFRIMA President, Mike Dada, Sunny Neji, Pretty Okafor (PMAN President), Olumide Mustapha (Chairman, MPAN), Sijuade Adedokun, (President AMAMN), Chinedu Chukwuji, (National Coordinator, RELPI), Mayo Ayilaran, (DG/CEO, MCSN), foremost female drummer, Ara Olamuyiwa, Laolu Akins, Joel Ajayi, Yinka Obebe, Justin Ige, Kesse Jabari, Louis Udoh, Tayo Eleshin,  Precious Obeahon among others.

According to the organisers, the 2nd emergency summit of the stakeholders is strictly by invitation.

AFRIMA (All Africa Music Awards) is the Pinnacle of African Music globally.

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Breaking: Nollywood veteran Olofa Ina dies

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AJAGBE ADEYEMI TESLIM

SPONSORED BY: H&H

Popular Nollywood veteran Chief Adedeji Aderemi otherwise known as Olofa-Ina is dead, August24news.com has learned.

Actor, Saidi Balogun, confirmed his passing in a post shared on his Instagram account on Thursday, January 4.

He wrote: “Goodnight legend Chief Deji Akinremi (Olofa Ina) RIP.

Film producer and Chief Executive Officer of Best of Nollywood (BON) also confirmed his demise.

Aderemi who is the Sobaloju of Edeland, was 73.

Chief Aderemi is a renowned name in contemporary Yoruba theatre and film circle.

He is also famous for the rich Yoruba proverbs and idioms that punctuate his lines in various films and stage plays

He was born into the family of the late Chief AbdulSalam Aderemi and the late madam Aisha Aderemi of Jagun- Olukosi compound, Ede in Osun State on 15th May, 1950 during the reign of the late Oba John Adetoyese Laoye, the then Timi of Ede.

He had his primary education at St. Peters Anglican Primary School between 1957 and 1962 and then proceeded to Baptist Secondary Modern School, Ode-Omu from 1963 to 1965.

He later had his vocational training in carpentry and joinery at Olukorede Furniture Industry between 1965 and 1970.

Prior to 1980, he had earlier floated the Olofa Ina Theatre Group in 1972 with the likes of Erinfolamin, Dasofunjo, Gbolagade Akinpelu and the late Oyetunji of Esinnla compound, Ede.

He received his theatre training under the late Oyetunji.

The Olofa Ina Group recorded landmark achievements in the theatre industry by pioneering the staging of epical histories of the Yoruba warlords of the 18th and 19th centuries, including Basorun Ogunmola, Balogun Ibikunle, Ogedengbe Agbogungboro of Ilesha, Aare Kurunmi of Ijaye, Kakanfo Afonja and a host of others.

These productions were recorded by Nigerian Television (NTV) Ibadan in the 70s and were narrated by the late Dr. Babayemi then, of the Institute of African Studies, University of Ibadan who later became the Oba Olufi of Gbongan, Osun state.

Olofa-Ina also recorded series of television productions among which are Odetedo, Lakaaye, Kogun Maja, and Ade Oba.

From all of us here at August24news.com Entertainment page we say continue to rest with thy lord Daddy.

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