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