Grammy Award-winning singer, Damini Ebunoluwa Ogulu, popularly known as Burna Boy, has expressed his admiration for 2Baba, Timaya, D’banj, Larry Gaaga, and Wande Coal, stating that they are the only veterans in the Nigerian music industry whom he respects.
In a recent Instagram live session, the self-acclaimed ‘African Giant’, revealed how each of the artistes mentioned impacted his life and career.
Burna Boy recounted a story of visiting Timaya’s residence in either 2012 or 2013, where he was struck by the artist’s achievements and received advice to aim for similar heights of success.
He also mentioned that D’banj generously covered the expenses for his music video, and 2Baba extended a collaboration opportunity to him when he had no reason to.
The Last Last Crooner also commended Larry Gaaga for his authenticity and dedication to genuine artistry, choosing to remain true to his craft rather than conforming to industry standards.
His words: “The only OGs who have impacted my life; number one, Timaya, because he is the one who showed me that achieving stardom was possible. I’m going to respect him for the rest of my life.
“D’banj also supported me back then. He paid for ‘Wan Da Mo’ video. These are two people I don’t joke with. It’s not like n*ggas don’t have respect; no, n*ggas have just been through a lot and we only remember the people we saw in the dark times. People like Larry Gaaga. He stood by me back then. So these are people I will respect for the rest of my life.
“When you’re talking about OGs, as far as I’m concerned, those names are the only ones in addition to 2Face based on musicality and the fact that he did a feature with me when he didn’t have to back in the day. These are OGs to me. Any other person isn’t an OG to me. ID Cabasa, you can meet Olamide, and you can be an OG to him. We’ve all been through stuff differently, and we all see life differently.
“I can’t forget Wande Coal, too. At a point in time, we were so close.”