Davido is most influential Nigerian under 40, Asa Asika claims - The Guardian Nigeria News

Talent manager Asa Asika has described Afrobeats star Davido as “probably the most influential person from Nigeria below the age of 40,” citing the singer’s social media reach, commercial appeal...

Talent manager Asa Asika has described Afrobeats star Davido as “probably the most influential person from Nigeria below the age of 40,” citing the singer’s social media reach, commercial appeal and ability to command attention beyond music.

Asika made the claim while speaking on The Manager’s Playbook, where he reflected on his long-standing working relationship with the singer and the scale of Davido’s influence in the entertainment industry.“Davido is probably the most influential person from Nigeria below the age of 40, in my opinion,” Asika said.

The talent manager, who is also co-founder of The Plug Entertainment, pointed to social media as one of the clearest measures of Davido’s reach.“Social media-wise, there’s no argument. Some people might debate it, but let’s use the most popular metric, which is social media. David is probably the most followed artiste on almost every platform,” he added.

Asika said he often jokes with Davido about the extent of his influence, telling the singer that he is “kind of like the president of Nigeria”. Davido, according to Asika, responds by telling him to leave him alone.The manager also spoke about Davido’s ability to remain commercially relevant despite controversies that, in Asika’s view, could have had more damaging consequences for another artiste.

“There are some things I’ve seen David do and I’d be like, if someone else did this, they would never ever get back from this,” he said.“Sometimes I’m like, yeah, it’s over. I don’t know how we’re going to bounce back from this. And everybody wakes up tomorrow, and they’re like, yeah, nothing happened.”Asika further described Davido as a “walking billboard”, saying brands regularly approach the singer because of the visibility associated with his name.“I have messages from brands that just want David to hold their product for 20 minutes or put it in his video,” he said.

According to Asika, the commercial interest in Davido has also changed how the team approaches music videos, with brands sometimes providing financial support in exchange for association with the singer.He recalled one long-term endorsement arrangement with a Chinese phone company, joking that Davido’s use of an iPhone could result in financial deductions under the agreement.

The comments come as Davido continues to maintain a major presence in Nigerian and international entertainment, with his music, social media activity and brand partnerships keeping him at the centre of conversations around Afrobeats and celebrity culture.Asika’s assessment is his personal view of Davido’s influence, rather than an independently established ranking of Nigerians under 40.