Global music star Akon has credited Banky W—not himself—with discovering Afrobeats superstar Wizkid, revealing that he only signed the Nigerian singer after being introduced to him during a trip to Nigeria.
Speaking in an interview with The Shade Room, the Senegalese-American singer explained that Banky W had already identified Wizkid’s talent and was nurturing his career before their meeting. According to Akon, he immediately recognised the young artiste’s potential and decided to support his international growth.
“Banky W discovered Wizkid. That’s how that collaboration went. I went to Nigeria, and Banky brought me Wiz, and I’m like: ‘Bro! This kid is a star.’ They had limited resources, so when I signed Wiz, that was what broke him into the United States,” Akon said.
He noted that the partnership helped expose Wizkid to the American music market at a time when Afrobeats had not yet achieved the global influence it enjoys today.
Akon also reflected on a missed opportunity involving Canadian rapper Drake. He revealed that he considered signing the future Grammy-winning artiste around 2008 but was unable to meet the financial terms being requested.
“Drake was the only one I had a shoutout at, and I wanted it to become official. It wasn’t that I didn’t see the vision that he was going to be big; he just wasn’t big then and was requesting a whopping $1 million to sign for me,” Akon explained.
He added that Drake’s music at the time reminded him of Eminem, saying it was only after the release of “Best I Ever Had” in 2009 that he realised the rapper had found his unique sound. By then, however, Drake had become too expensive to sign.
Wizkid, whose real name is Ayodeji Ibrahim Balogun, was signed to Banky W’s Empire Mates Entertainment (EME) in 2009. He rose to fame with “Holla at Your Boy” before releasing his debut album Superstar in 2011, which produced several hit songs and launched him into mainstream success.
After leaving EME in 2013, Wizkid established Starboy Entertainment, building one of Africa’s most successful music brands. Today, he is recognised as one of the continent’s biggest global stars, with collaborations featuring Drake, Beyoncé, Justin Bieber, Chris Brown, Skepta and Tems.
