D'banj set to release, 'King Don come'

One of the most surprising parts of D’banj’s announcement of a new album is the bonus tracks. The singer draws from his distant past to include forgotten music into his future record.

D’banj has announced that he will be releasing a new album titled “King Don Come.”

The singer has been clouded by speculation that he is set to drop a new project, and now he has confirmed it. In a post on Instagram, the singer uploaded a photo of the handwritten tracklist, signed at the bottom. “King Don Come” album will contain 10 tracks with collaborations from Harrysong, Wande Coal, and a few unnamed acts.

It contains single ‘Emergency’, and a reworked version of ‘Focus’ named as ‘Turn down for what’. Interestingly, his 2012 single ‘Oliver Twist’ makes the list. So also does the 2013 highly successful ‘Top of the world’, which was performed at the closing ceremony of the 2013 African Cup Of Nations (AFCON).

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D'banj "King Don Come" album Tracklist

Everyone is surprised that ‘Oliver Twist’ and ‘Top of the world’ made it on to this album. There’s no logical explanation that the singer would offer to justify its inclusion. The safe explanation would be that D’banj would hate for some of his best post-Mo’Hits music to float around without a home. “King Don Come” would be the perfect project to house them.

But perhaps there’s more to that. Perhaps there’s a little stretch of thought which says that this might be D’banj’s last album before he rides into the sunset with Agriculture and content marketing. It’s a possibility, one which you might want to explore.

D’banj once had a good thing with Don Jazzy and Mo’Hits. But after the split in 2011, he hit the jackpot with Oliver Twist in 2012 and signed a deal with Kanye West’s GOOD Music. ‘Oliver Twist’ gave D’banj his last highest applause on the scene. From the forests of Congo to the skyscrapers of New York, he was celebrated and placed on a pedestal.

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D'banj and Bernice Burgos 

(Instagram)

That was the highest height at that point, and everyone sang his name. He was a great performer, an uber entertainer, and the man who could do no wrong. But deep down he knew this was fleeting. It was heaven beckoning at him to leave on a high.

He had lost his support system, Don Jazzy and moved houses, and no matter how much he enjoyed the highs of ‘Oliver Twist’, there was no plan to get the music going. We all know the rest.

While D’banj has struggled musically, his brand has flourished. Brand engagements with Ciroc, Apple, SLOT, ONE and MTN has given him impressive paychecks.

But everyone knew D’banj still has one last album in him. It’s difficult for him to be a part of the front-row conversation about the future of Nigerian music and its current sound structure. But he continues to record, regardless of his position. That’s impressive.

And why not? He might not be hot, but he is a big artist, who still retains the love, affection and respect of millions of Africans. Although they might never interact with his music in the supreme affection they accord to buzzing pop stars of today, they would still pay attention.

He is D’banj. That name still means something in the music world. We are all emotionally connected to it.

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There are no huge singles to push this project, for now. ‘Emergency’ is yesterday’s song. It’s time is done. ‘Oliver Twist’ and ‘Top of the world’ are relics. They belong in a museum, to be revered and referenced when new generations want to study the essentials of D’banj. The rest of the music is new, untested and untried.

Depending on how well the singles perform, “King Don Come” will be judged and consumed objectively in mainstream Nigerian music industry. But it will never be rated highly or consumed as his earlier projects.

Knowing D’banj, he would rely on his videos to keep himself relevant, but it all feels like an effort in chasing the game, rather than running with it.

“King Don Come” will be out this July, but there will be no loyal Kingdom for it to rule over.