VMAs 2023: Davido

Rolling Stone

Davido talks with Rolling Stone’s Delisa Shannon at the 2023 VMAs

Transcript

00:00 Alright, I wanna know, let's just get into it, right?

00:02 Let's just get into it.

00:03 This is the first year that Afrobeats is being recognized

00:06 here at the VMAs with its own category.

00:08 How does that feel for you

00:09 and to be a part of the nominees?

00:12 - Man, like, I've been saying it for years,

00:14 you know what I'm saying?

00:15 I knew the day would come that, you know,

00:17 the culture, not only the music,

00:18 but the culture would be accepted worldwide,

00:20 you feel me?

00:21 And I'm just happy to see it.

00:23 I grew up half of my life in America.

00:25 You know, as an African coming up from Africa

00:28 straight to America, you know, I'm happy to see,

00:32 you turn on your radio, you hear African music,

00:34 you go to the club, you hear African music,

00:37 we selling out arenas now, you know what I'm saying?

00:39 So it's beautiful to see, man, you know, it's dope.

00:41 - It's up, excuse me, I'm so sorry,

00:43 we're gonna bring this back.

00:44 - Do we need a backup in this?

00:46 - We're just gonna bring this back.

00:47 - No, I'm not back up,

00:48 Becca's over there with the orange bag.

00:51 - Yeah, I know, it's a lot.

00:52 Sorry, a little bit back.

00:56 - Sorry, we're just gonna move back just a little bit.

00:58 Thank you so much, just got real crowded.

01:00 We're good to go?

01:01 Okay, perfect.

01:02 Now, "Unbelievable."

01:04 Unavailable.

01:06 It is nominated tonight.

01:10 And I wanna know, how did you know

01:12 that song was gonna be a hit?

01:14 - Man, I made that song like 40 minutes, man,

01:16 but I knew, once I heard it, I knew.

01:19 'Cause when I was making the song,

01:21 I wanted to make a song that was gonna make,

01:23 how will I say it?

01:24 I wanted to make a song that was gonna make

01:26 people feel important.

01:28 Feel important, like, you know what I'm saying?

01:30 I'm unavailable, you can't see me.

01:32 You can't touch me, you know what I'm saying?

01:34 That was the type of vibe I was thinking

01:36 when I was making the record.

01:37 And then, obviously, shout out to my producer,

01:39 Big Rage and Magic Sticks.

01:41 They came through with an amazing beat.

01:44 And then shout out to the choreographer

01:47 that came in with a challenge.

01:49 - Yep, yep.

01:50 - Yeah, that came in with a challenge.

01:52 You know, "Unbelievable."

01:54 We did that, we posted it, and it went crazy.

01:57 - That, I can't go on TikTok without seeing this.

02:01 Without seeing it, I can't, I can't.

02:03 And you got Lotto on the remix, as well as Sean Paul.

02:07 - Lotto remix, we got a Sean Paul and Ding Dong remix.

02:10 We did that for Jamaica, you know what I'm saying?

02:12 Just to, you know, the song is worldwide,

02:14 and I just wanted to, you know, have everybody feel it.

02:16 And Lotto loved the song, you know what I'm saying?

02:18 She loves it, she was playing it all the time.

02:20 And we both from, you know, Atlanta.

02:22 So it was a perfect match.

02:24 And then Sean Paul, me and Sean,

02:27 I've always wanted to work with Sean Paul.

02:28 I grew up listening to Sean Paul, so from there,

02:31 you know, it just hit him up, like, "Yo, get on it."

02:34 'Cause I love Jamaica, I always be in Jamaica,

02:37 so it was a good thing to collaborate with other people,

02:39 you know, in different parts of the world.

02:41 - And you mentioned this earlier, you know,

02:43 you have half Atlanta, half a part of the world,

02:47 honestly, at this point.

02:48 Can you talk a little bit about that experience

02:50 of just bringing and creating world music?

02:52 - I mean, even like, people say this,

02:55 like my style is really,

02:57 my style is really Afro, you know, Afro beats musically.

03:02 But like my clothes, the way I dress, people might say,

03:04 it might be from like the Western world, you feel me?

03:07 But, you know, even when I was living in America,

03:10 I always stuck to my African roots, always.

03:12 I didn't play with it.

03:13 Down to listen to music, you know, stuff like that,

03:16 always stuck to my roots.

03:18 So it wasn't, yeah, Musa Keys, featuring on "Unavailable,"

03:21 nominated tonight too.

03:23 - I love it, hello.

03:24 - Like I was saying, you know what I'm saying?

03:26 Always stuck to my roots.

03:27 (whooshing)

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