Sounding Off
The Afrobeats singer, Davido has made a powerful comeback with his 2023 Timeless album following a personal trauma of the loss of the son. The new album has since gained popularity split along the lines of sentiment and good judgement. While he worked doubly had to promote his album, Davido has a lot of rising contenders in the music scene and it is no longer business as usual.
Before his re-entry into the music scene this year after being unavailable for some months, many younger artists such as Rema and Omah Lay have been conquering TikTok and pushing harder towards global popularity.
Davido’s Homecoming Timeless Concert in Lagos was quite memorable for the use of a beautifully built stage -a replica of the military cap-shaped National Theatre-and the band’s showmanship. The supporting acts on the show made it almost impossible to rate the show too low as everyone showed up for OBO, the legend who is known for hit tracks like ‘If’ ‘Damiduro’ and more recently “Feel” and “Unavailable.”
Davido
Fast forward to last weekend’s BET Awards where Davido made Africa proud with the backdrop radiating the African sun. The amber-coloured fabric on the backup dancers added much visual warmth to the scene. Sadly though, one could barely hear Davido sing even with his microphone. The singer has been known for his hoarse voice and was more of a hype man on stage than a singer. Out of respect for his warm persona, some in the audience were on their feet while a substantial number remained on their seats unconvinced of his vocal command or song.
Without being unduly critical, Davido needs to work more on vocal lessons; slow down some parts of his son to allow him to sing it like a ballad before ever inviting the audience to dance. The BET Best International Act Winner 2023, Burna Boy is one of the leading artists from Nigeria who has remarkably sounded good even without auto-tune; hence his global fame and accolades are clearly not misplaced.
Davido’s fans online however who are often moved by his unique beats and generous nature always take it personal when critics come after Davido but the truth must be told, however uncomfortable it is. Davido is in dire need of a voice coach, a better performing back-up singers and a good vocal rest.
