The popular Nigerian singer lost his mother in August 2023, She was laid to rest on Friday 13 October. After a couple of months the singer has shared his worries about the death of his mother Mrs. Dolapo Balogun and claim life has become meaningless of late.
“The pain is profound,” he remarked. It aches a lot. The worst ache I have ever experienced in my life. Wizkid remarked, “I’m lost, but I pray God will comfort all of us,” during his mother’s wake-keep ritual on Thursday, October 12, 2023 and till now he claims he hasn’t been able to get over the pain.
Wizkid dedicated the song “Mummy Mi” from his “Ayo” album in 2014 to mothers everywhere around the world. The singer promised to shower his mother with the best things in life as he thanked her for all the happiness she brought him in the song.
Recently after his mother’s demise Wizkid generously promised to contribute ₦100 million to children in honour of his late mother. The musician revealed the effort and the date of distribution on his instagram story.
Wizkid, whose real name is Ayodeji Ibrahim Balogun and who was born on July 16, 1990, is a Nigerian singer-songwriter. In the 2010s, he is recognised for having popularised Afrobeats, and he is considered one of the greatest and most significant African musicians of all time.
At the age of eleven, he started recording music, and he and a few of his church mates founded the Glorious Five (5), with whom he made a collaboration CD. Wizkid and Banky W’s Empire Mates Entertainment (E.M.E.) inked a record agreement in 2009. Later, he gained notoriety with the release of “Holla at Your Boy,” the lead single off his 2011 debut studio album Superstar, which also included the hits “Don’t Dull” and “Tease Me/Bad Guys.”
He released his self-titled second studio album, Ayo, in September 2014. The song “Jaiye Jaiye” was one of six singles that backed the album. Upon the expiration of his contract, Wizkid left E.M.E. Wizkid rose to prominence internationally in 2016 after he and Drake collaborated on the smash hit song “One Dance,” which peaked at number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 and at the top of charts in 14 other countries.
Wizkid became the first afrobeats artist to be listed in the Guinness World Records as the song broke numerous records.He inked a multi-album contract with RCA Records in March 2017, and the following year saw the release of his third studio album, Sounds from the Other Side. Five singles, including “Come Closer” with Drake, backed the album.
As a result of his contributions to the Nigerian music scene, Wizkid has received numerous honours, including his first-ever Grammy Award for Best Music Video for his lead performance on Beyoncé’s “Brown Skin Girl” .At the BET Awards (4), American Music Awards (2), MTV Video Music Award (1), Soul Train Awards (3), Billboard Awards (3), iHeartRadio Music Awards (2), and MOBO Awards (6), he is the most honoured African artist. In addition, he was awarded an ASCAP plaque for his compositional work on Drake’s “One Dance” , which set two Guinness World Records as the first song to attain one billion Spotify plays and the record for most streamed song at the time.
In 2019, New African magazine listed Wizkid among the Top 100 most influential Africans. In the history of The Headies awards, he is also the most honoured artist. He received nominations for “Essence” and the Made in Lagos Deluxe Edition albums for Best Global Music Performance and Best Global Music Album, respectively, at the 64th Annual Grammy Awards. The Apple Music Awards selected him as the winner of the Artist of the Year (Africa) in November 2021.
WizKid was greatly influenced by his mother, who encouraged his musical goals at an early age. She supported WizKid’s involvement in the church choir and bought him instruments to further foster his love for music.
WizKid has frequently mentioned his mother as the main source of support and motivation in his ascent to fame on different occasions. She shown tenacity and resolve as a single mother by raising WizKid and his siblings. She graduated from the University of Lagos with a degree in social sciences.
Notwithstanding the difficulties she encountered, she continued to be a resolute support system for WizKid during his ascent to prominence.
Wizkid’s pain after his mother’s burial shows how important and influential his mother was in his life and career. This is the time he needs the maximum support from his fans around the world. We hope he bounces back stronger and continue to do good music for his fans around the world.
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