Nigerian rapper Sodiq Abubakar Yusuf aka CDQ is opening up about a major moment early in his career that many fans never knew about. He revealed that the moment involved Davido, a fat offer, and a deal that never happened.
In a recent interview with Echo Room, the Nowo E Soke crooner revealed that shortly after the success of his breakout hit ‘Indomie’, Afrobeats superstar David Adeleke aka Davido reached out to sign him to his label.
According to CDQ, Davido was fresh off a successful African tour and wanted to invest in his growing music empire by bringing him on board. CDQ said:
“Davido reached out to me through Twitter back then that he wanted to sign me. He told me he just made a lot of money from his African tour and wanted to invest it in music and make me the biggest rapper in Africa.”
But while the offer sounded juicy, there was one condition CDQ couldn’t overlook and that was the involvement of his producer and longtime collaborator, Masterkraft. He said:
“I told him whatever I’m doing, Masterkraft has to be involved.”
The three eventually met to discuss the terms, but the conversation took a different turn when Masterkraft, recognizing CDQ’s strong street following, suggested a partnership deal instead of a traditional recording contract. He continued:
“Masterkraft told Davido that CDQ is already a movement on the streets and should consider a partnership instead of a recording deal. But Davido declined, and the deal fell through.”
Despite the missed opportunity, CDQ would go on to carve out his own lane in the Nigerian music scene, dropping hits like Salaro, Woss Wobi, and Ko Funny, while collaborating with major acts including Wizkid, Olamide, and more.
The rapper’s revelation adds another layer to the ever-evolving story of Nigerian music. A behind-the-scenes look at how some of the biggest names nearly linked up, but fate had other plans.
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