AFROBEAT music sensation Oladapo Daniel Oyebanjo popularly known as D'Banj's took London by storm yesterday when he received a Black Entertainment Film Fashion Television and Arts (Beffta) award at the House of Commons.
In the UK on a musical tour, DBanj took time out to attend the ceremony, where he was presented with the award by Lord John Bird, the founder of The Big Issue newspaper. At the classy event graced by dozens of Nigerians in the UK, among those who paid tribute to DBanj at the event were Beffta's chief executive Dr Pauline Long, its chairman Chief Bimbo Afolayan and motivational speaker Dayo Olomu.
Widely regarded as the premier black awards ceremony in the UK, Beffta honours ethnic minority artisans, entertainers, media outlets, intellectuals and community. Its annual event in London, attracts thousands of Africans and people of Caribbean descent and has been graced by icons including the likes of Trevor McDonald over the years.
Regarded as the face of Nigerian Afrobeat music, Dbanj, who won the Best Selling African Artist award at the 2014 World Music Awards which took place in Monte Carlo, Monaco, is among other things the African Ambassador for Beats by Dre. A passionate believer in helping the less fortunate, DBanj recently invested in African agriculture as a way of combating poverty on the continent.
DBanj said: "I am very grateful for this award. I realised about three years ago, that to whom much is given, much is expected, so I am happy to be honoured with award and will continue to do my best for my fans and all those I can help."
Dr Long added: "This is a well deserved honour for DBanj because he is the first African to ever go into the UK charts. He is an inspiration to many budding African and Nigerian artists and stands out as a role model."
Lord Bird said: " I am pleased to use my position as a member of the House of Lords to help promote literature, the arts, music, the less privileged and creative talents. I like the idea of bringing global culture to the House of Lords as I believe it should be a place for everyone."
Chief Afolayan added that there are between 4.5m and 5m Africans in the UK, of which about 2m are Nigerians and Beffta is here to highlight their success. He added that in his role as chairman, he hopes to expand the awards ceremony by making it truly global and honouring more icons like DBanj.
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