Nigerian music star, David Adeleke, popularly known as Davido, has shared how his father influenced his annual birthday donations to orphanages.
Speaking during an appearance on The Morning Hustle podcast on Tuesday, Davido recalled a moment in 2021 when he posted his account number on Twitter during his birthday.
“I tweeted my account number randomly on Twitter on my birthday, and my fans ended up sending me close to $400,000. I was thinking about what to do with it,” he said.
However, he mentioned that his father caught wind of it and advised him to think differently about how to use the money.
“My dad called me and said, ‘You know you can’t keep that money, right?’ I was like, ‘What? What do you mean I can’t keep my money? It’s my money.’”
Consequently, Davido said he decided to donate the entire amount to a motherless babies’ home.
“I gave it all away to the motherless babies’ homes. We did that the first and second years, back to back. The first year, it was the donations, the next year I used my own money. I also used my money this year.
“It’s something we’ve been doing every year with the foundation, and we hope for it to get bigger. There are about 500 orphanages. I met people who told me they were beneficiaries. Imagine all those people praying for you.”
PUNCH Online reports that in November 2021, Davido donated ₦251 million to 292 orphanages in commemoration of his 29th birthday.
He reportedly gathered about ₦201 million from fans “who sent him small amounts of money they could afford” and added ₦50 million from his own pocket to the donation.
In July 2023, the musician reportedly donated ₦237 million to over 400 orphanages in Nigeria.
He announced a ₦300 million donation to orphanages across the country in February 2024, and in commemoration of his 32nd birthday on 21st November, he once again announced a ₦300 million donation to support orphanages and a charity focused on combating drug abuse among young people across Nigeria.
