I will never use small eye to look at Davido again! Tonight he performed to a sold-out hall at the Troxy, London as he kicked off his UK Album Launch Tour with so much fire and energy that it’s easy to see why he retains his hold as one of Africa’s most popular and successful musical artists.
As soon as DJ Starzy kicked off the night with thumping bass and familiar tunes from Wizkid, Sarkodie P-Square and a host of popular artists, the crowd were already starting to sway and show their shoki expertise.
The crowd couldn’t stop moving!
Congolese MC, comedian and all-round waist-man Eddie Kadi was there to host the event and further hot the crowd hyped up – not just with jokes but with a taste of that legendary waist of his. By the time he was ready to bring the first act on, the room was lit!
Rotimo was the first act, and ladies and gentlemen, I think this is definitely one to look out for. He did the mandatory club banger called GBAM! but it was his ballad ‘Best Thing Ever‘ that really got me shook. His technique is very similar to d’Angelo – the beautiful base of a grown man fixed with the soaring trebles that caught you off-guard.
Following with the tempo was a Congolese trio – LDNC Boys – their talent was raw and edgy, and what that young man can do with his pecs…it wouldn’t be Christianly of me to say!
DJ AfroB came on and repped the Ivory Coast wella with their costumes and their dances. Maybe it wasn’t as high octane as the rest, but I loved the ethnic performance!
YFS – I can’t say much about them. All I saw was Uwulicious yanshes. Oh, and a wardrobe malfunction! I nearly forgot! One of the ladies? Her boob just popped out! She an’t say she didn’t feel the sudden change in temperature but then again, maybe the air is hot up there…
Yeah, her. In the red. Boob slip.
DizzyVC really impressed me because his dancers were both male, and they were amazeballs! Sometimes it’s so easy to get girls to shake their bums, but this dancing actually got me hyped.
Shina Rambo sang his hit song Mr Icey (which incidentally is where I first fell in love with Olamide – aaah, to be young and in love!) and he brought some girls who twerked.
AND THEN OMO BABA OLOWO TORE IT ALL THE WAY UP! He charged on the stage with “Dami Duro” and I have to tell you, the energy simply didn’t quit till the end of the show!
He took us from ‘Gobe’ straight to ‘All of you’ and then seamlessly into ‘Runtown’, the duet he did with Gallardo – boom choon!
Next is one of my favourite collaborations – ‘Number One’ as performed with Diamond Platnumz, but we were not ready for the next act! He picked a girl from the audience and she came up to dance with him. ‘Nek Unek’ came on and this girl rocked it HARD!
Oh, y’all thought it was a fluke? People, she gave him her ‘Shoki‘ too as the remix with Lil Kesh and Olamide pounded out through the speakers and it was proper gangsta!
‘Daddy’ was next, and a firm favourite ‘Tchelete’ kept the crowd jumping. David was relentless and just kept churning out hit after hit. Although I knew every single song, it hadn’t occurred to me before tonight just how prolific this young man was.
Drenched in sweat but still knowing that a strong finish and a memorable finale was the only way to go, Davido killed the crowd as he launched into ’Skelewu’ with flames and bursts of dry ice. Chei, by this time, we were all his choir and every single person in that hall was hyped to the max!
He brought in ‘Aye’ ever so gently – like the ballad that it was. Like the piece of soul that it is – a truly sweet touch to the song.
The beats soon kicked in though, and right when he said “Baby girl, you’re the baddest” I became a Davido fan.
He is a consummate performer and a talented artiste. He certainly knows his audience and doesn’t fail to give them what they need.
None of this would have been possible without the heavy machinery in the background though, and SMADE London, Smade Media, and Adeshope of Factory 78 need to take a bow. They worked tirelessly, they publicised relentlessly and they made it happen! David sang to a packed out venue, and everybody definitely got their money’s worth. Bravo!
SMADE himself!
Adeshope of Factory 78 with Davido
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