I blew my first major deal money in a day – Davido on costly career lesson

When Davido signed his first major record deal, he thought he had made it.

The Nigerian superstar, fresh off years of recording in makeshift studios with minimal resources, was finally in the big leagues.

But as he revealed on the Drink Champs podcast monitored by MyNewsGh, the excitement of that moment led him to make one of the biggest financial mistakes of his early career.

“I got my deal, and the money came. I was like, ‘Yo, we lit!’” Davido recalled. “Same day, I took all my boys shopping. We went crazy. We spent it all.”

It wasn’t until later that the reality of the situation hit him—what he had thought was a personal cash-out was actually part of his album budget.

“I called my people like, ‘Yo, when are we starting the album?’ They told me, ‘Bro, you spent your budget,’” he admitted. “That was my first reality check.”

The lesson was harsh, but it reshaped Davido’s approach to the business side of the music industry. After realizing that major deals weren’t just about receiving lump sums of cash but about structured investments into one’s career, he had to rethink how he operated.

From that moment, Davido understood that success wasn’t just about making music but also about making smart financial decisions.