On Tuesday, June 11, 2024, the pop star, Oladapo Oyebanjo, popularly known as D’banj, celebrated his 20th anniversary on stage at the New Afrika Shrine with a concert, tagged, “D’banj live @New Afrika Shrine’, where he thrilled fans with electrifying performances.
D’banj may not have sold out O2 Arena, London, or the FBN Stadium in Johannesburg, but the crowd who made it to the shrine had a happy moment, and despite the rain, there was real party vibe in the air with everyone on his/her feet throughout.
Dancing and grinding to his songs, Nigerians at the concert seemed to have forgotten the economic downturn, as they celebrated one of the best artistes of his generation. He commanded the stage and had the crowd rooting for more.
The concert at the Shrine was graced by some of the top music stars and stakeholders in the country. To whet guests’ appetite, there were performances by upcoming artistes. D’banj finally appeared on stage at exactly 11:18pm and kicked off the show with his 2008 hit, Gbona Feli Feli, a track off his The Entertainer album.
Deep into the night, he was joined by Made Kuti who serenaded the audience with a one-minute performance. Later, Yeni Kuti joined the Koko Master on stage briefly.
The night wore on as he sang some of his hit songs and dropped the mic at exactly 12:28am with Emergency, a track from the album, King Don Come, his fourth studio album.
The performance was nothing less than breathtaking, as he wowed his fans for over an hour, packing in more than 30 tracks, including most of his renaissance album and favourites from previous albums.
Called a master in the game, in 2004, D’banj and Michael Collins Ajereh, known professionally as Don Jazzy, co-founded Mo’Hits Records, one of Nigeria’s favourite record labels whose painful split shattered the hearts of many.
The label, which comprised Don Jazzy, D’Banj, Wande Coal, as well as Dr. Sid, K-Switch, Ikechukwu and D’Prince, split in 2012.
D’banj rose to prominence in 2005 with his debut album, No Long Thing, featuring the hit single, Tongolo. Since then, the artiste has gone to become a prominent figure in Nigerian music.
D’banj’s two decades career has brought him several awards, such as ‘Best African Act’ at the MTV Europe Music Awards in 2007, ‘Best International Act’ at the 2011 BET Awards, and ‘Best-selling African Artiste’ at the 2014 World Music Awards.
In 2013, he became the first Nigerian artiste to perform at a major soccer tournament, as he thrilled everyone present at the 2013 African Cup of Nations (AFCON) closing ceremony. Before the concert, he had hosted stakeholders at his anniversary dinner, which was filled with moments of nostalgia.
