Kix Mag: Introduce your self in 3 words…
D’Banj: Entertainer, businessman & entrepreneur.
D’Banj: Entertainer, businessman & entrepreneur.
Kix: What brings you to the UK?
D’Banj: I am here to introduce the UK Market to my new song ‘Bother You’. A soundtrack from an upcoming film ‘Half Of A Yellow Sun’ (This film takes place in Nigeria during the Nigerian-Biafran War in 1967-1970. The effect of the war is shown through the dynamic relationships of four people’s lives ranging from high-ranking political figures, a professor, a British citizen, and a houseboy.)
Kix: How did the video from the song come about?
D’Banj: This year is my 10th Anniversary of my music career. I started in 2004… as a performance artist – ‘Bother You’ for me is a serious song showcasing clips of the film within the music video, as it’s not one of my original songs it’s a soundtrack to a movie - so I wanted to play it down and produce a mature visual and also it’s an inspiring song about ‘Love’ it’s taken from a best seller book – Half of a Yellow Sun is a novel by the Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.
When I watched the film by the executive producer, what inspired to do the song is the love story within the film – as this kind of love ‘does it still exist’? – the kind of love you have forever – originally the song is an evergreen song by Lionel Richie’s ‘All Night Long’ reproduced & reconstructed by film makers and D’Banj. It was confirmation that this was the next big hit.
Kix: How did your name artist name D’banj come about?
D’Banj: My Name is a combination of my real name, with a quirky style as my first name is Dapo Daniel and my fathers family name is Oyebanjo – so I put them together to creative D’Banj full name is Dapo Daniel Oyebanjo. Also I have another name called ‘Koko Master’ this came from one of my earlier songs, where I branded this name – as it means ‘something you do to drive pleasure’ and I am the master of that!
Kix: How did your family take apart in your music career?
D’Banj: I have two brothers originally, my younger brother K-Switch who co-wrote the ‘Bother You’ single with me and my elder brother who died in a plane crash when I was 14 – he used to play the harmonica. When I saw his items on the bed I picked it up and a week later at school I started to mimic his music and it came apart of my image and brand – overall my sisters and parents had great influence in my music career.
Kix: Who has been you current and past music influences and why?
D’Banj: We have to write a book about that, as I have been inspired by everyone and everything. But Kanye West has been a great influence, as he is just like me as we have the same star sign, he was born June 8th and I was born June 9th. For all things in music but in business I am a mixture of Jay z and P Diddy. When you look at them I feel I am like them, mix them together you’re the greatest! (He laughs)
Kix: When we have a look at your music, its very humorous. Why?
D’Banj: My character overall is charismatic and funny and I push my music on how I feel and the delivery. I put all this in making my song to performance. Believe you me the world is too serious right now, so I am brining a little bit of D’Banj to their lives. The way the world (people) is through laughter (when he mentioned this the reporter (@shaziyaramji) said also ‘food’ – and made D’Banj even more hungry – as he was placing his food order with this manager in the background).
D’Banj: I am here to introduce the UK Market to my new song ‘Bother You’. A soundtrack from an upcoming film ‘Half Of A Yellow Sun’ (This film takes place in Nigeria during the Nigerian-Biafran War in 1967-1970. The effect of the war is shown through the dynamic relationships of four people’s lives ranging from high-ranking political figures, a professor, a British citizen, and a houseboy.)
Kix: How did the video from the song come about?
D’Banj: This year is my 10th Anniversary of my music career. I started in 2004… as a performance artist – ‘Bother You’ for me is a serious song showcasing clips of the film within the music video, as it’s not one of my original songs it’s a soundtrack to a movie - so I wanted to play it down and produce a mature visual and also it’s an inspiring song about ‘Love’ it’s taken from a best seller book – Half of a Yellow Sun is a novel by the Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.
When I watched the film by the executive producer, what inspired to do the song is the love story within the film – as this kind of love ‘does it still exist’? – the kind of love you have forever – originally the song is an evergreen song by Lionel Richie’s ‘All Night Long’ reproduced & reconstructed by film makers and D’Banj. It was confirmation that this was the next big hit.
Kix: How did your name artist name D’banj come about?
D’Banj: My Name is a combination of my real name, with a quirky style as my first name is Dapo Daniel and my fathers family name is Oyebanjo – so I put them together to creative D’Banj full name is Dapo Daniel Oyebanjo. Also I have another name called ‘Koko Master’ this came from one of my earlier songs, where I branded this name – as it means ‘something you do to drive pleasure’ and I am the master of that!
Kix: How did your family take apart in your music career?
D’Banj: I have two brothers originally, my younger brother K-Switch who co-wrote the ‘Bother You’ single with me and my elder brother who died in a plane crash when I was 14 – he used to play the harmonica. When I saw his items on the bed I picked it up and a week later at school I started to mimic his music and it came apart of my image and brand – overall my sisters and parents had great influence in my music career.
Kix: Who has been you current and past music influences and why?
D’Banj: We have to write a book about that, as I have been inspired by everyone and everything. But Kanye West has been a great influence, as he is just like me as we have the same star sign, he was born June 8th and I was born June 9th. For all things in music but in business I am a mixture of Jay z and P Diddy. When you look at them I feel I am like them, mix them together you’re the greatest! (He laughs)
Kix: When we have a look at your music, its very humorous. Why?
D’Banj: My character overall is charismatic and funny and I push my music on how I feel and the delivery. I put all this in making my song to performance. Believe you me the world is too serious right now, so I am brining a little bit of D’Banj to their lives. The way the world (people) is through laughter (when he mentioned this the reporter (@shaziyaramji) said also ‘food’ – and made D’Banj even more hungry – as he was placing his food order with this manager in the background).
D’Banj has explored the sights of India as he lived and performed out there, for about a year just outside of Mumbai (as he was speaking hindi, cracking jokes) – he know a number of different languages & also visited Dubai before the release of ‘Oliver Twist’ and this is where he met ‘Kayne West’ before working together.
Kix: Tell me about your genre of music?
D’Banj: When the release of ‘Oliver Twist’ came out, I didn’t want people to compare me to ‘Fela’ which was Afro Beats – so I made a collaboration of a new genre called ‘Afro-Pop’ which blew in the earlier days of ‘Oliver Twist’ defining me in the music scene, soon there is going to be other cross genres for example Afro Jazz which will be heard in the clubs – as Afro Music is hear to stay especially in the UK – I must thank Kanye West for the release soon I might drop my colabo with Kanye (I don’t know when? Ssssh).
D’Banj: When the release of ‘Oliver Twist’ came out, I didn’t want people to compare me to ‘Fela’ which was Afro Beats – so I made a collaboration of a new genre called ‘Afro-Pop’ which blew in the earlier days of ‘Oliver Twist’ defining me in the music scene, soon there is going to be other cross genres for example Afro Jazz which will be heard in the clubs – as Afro Music is hear to stay especially in the UK – I must thank Kanye West for the release soon I might drop my colabo with Kanye (I don’t know when? Ssssh).
“Late this year, D’Banj will be releasing this album called ‘I am D’Banj’”
Kix: Tell me about your Record Label DB Records?
D’Banj: My label is a independent label based in East and West Africa and also out here in the UK where I just signed an artist called ‘Two Chis’ – we develop talented, songwriters and producers and work alongside existing distribution labels and have our own Management team called DKM Media (that also does events, where we have brought a number of successful artists to Nigeria to perform) – also I get involved in development and bring D’Banj style and brand to their tracks by giving them that platform they need in music.
D’Banj: My label is a independent label based in East and West Africa and also out here in the UK where I just signed an artist called ‘Two Chis’ – we develop talented, songwriters and producers and work alongside existing distribution labels and have our own Management team called DKM Media (that also does events, where we have brought a number of successful artists to Nigeria to perform) – also I get involved in development and bring D’Banj style and brand to their tracks by giving them that platform they need in music.
Kix: How did the song ‘Oliver Twist’ come about. From song to video concept?
D’Banj: We where just in New York wrapping up the deal with Kanye West and he mentioned my music has a humorous aspects to it and is very real. What inspired this track was the ‘Why Me?’ single so I jumped in the studio with my producer and took a very simple
hook-line and related it to music all over the world (in specific America). As it started as a joke Ref Beyonce, Nikki and Rihanna and it became a track in it’s self, and now its ‘Bother You’, my latest single.
Kix: How do you get your Kix?
Kix: How do you get your Kix?
D’Banj: Beautiful Girls (He laughs), serious though to represent the continent that I am from Nigeria. Nigeria has not been that much on the map in the music industry. I do best by bringing good music to the fans and change that impression to other countries (as we are still a developing country). I am proud to fight till the end in what I do, as there is a lot of good music coming from the UK representing Nigeria. Afro Music is hear to stay.
Interview & Written by Shaziya Ramji (www.shaziyaramji.com | www.shazdesigns.com)
Photography by Brian Would @BrianWouldphtographer & Shydo Islam @Shydo_MDP
ORGINAL ARTICLE
http://kixmagazine.org.uk/written-interviews/
