Dapo Oyebanji

D banj in show
D’banj, a skilled entertainer is known for his ability to own his stage. Photo: Within Nigeria

Dapo Oyebanji is the multiple award winning Nigerian entertainer whose Oliver Twist dance song topped African and UK charts between 2010 and 2011. Dapo Oyebanji, stage name D’banj, was born 1980 in Zaria where his father served as a military officer. Oyebanji was after his secondary school education at a Naval school in Ogun state introduced to music by his older brother who later died in a plane crash at the age of seventeen. Resolved to pursue a career in music against his father’s influence, he travelled to the UK and met the JJC & 419 Squad and was initiated into the group alongside Don Jazzy. Don Jazzy and D’banj later broke out of the group to form Mo’ hits group.

D’banj released his debut album “No long thing in 2005, vivifying the Nigerian music scene, his sophomore, “Rundown/Funk you up” came up in 2006 and The Entertainer, followed in 2008. His 2010 singles Mr. Endowed and Scapegoat are on every music playlist across the continent of Africa.

In 2012, Dapo ‘D’banj’ Oyebanjo split from the Mo Hits Record crew and joined the G.O.O.D Music family under Kanye West and was signed to Mercury Records, an imprint in the UK under the Mercury Records Group of Universal Music UK.

Contributor:
Tope Apoola
Profession: Writer