LEEDS, ENGLAND - NOVEMBER 29: Davido attends the MOBO Awards at First Direct Arena Leeds on November 29, 2017 in Leeds, England. (Photo by Anthony Devlin/Getty Images)
Davido hopes to turn his viral birthday request into an annual tradition. Last week, the artist asked friends and collaborators for one million Nigerian nairas. Davido pocketed more than $400,000 in about two days! But, according to the artist, that money won’t just be sitting in his bank account!
Instead, the artist has added an additional 50 million nairas (about $121,000) to the Wema bank account. He plans to donate the entire pot of more than $600,000 USD to Nigerian orphanages and the Paroche Foundation. The nonprofit focuses on educating people about substance abuse and addiction, per their website.
“My goal is to do this fundraising every year to celebrate my birthday and give back to people in need,” Davido said in a press release provided to The Shade Room. “It is my hope that my friends, fans, colleagues in the industry, and the public will continue to support me as I drive this cause.”
In the release, he expressed “sincere gratitude” to everyone who “donated hard-earned funds.” At this time, he’s established a five-person committee that will oversee the disbursement of the money. Davido hopes to keep the process transparent by sharing the names of the orphanages and the amount they receive!
As previously reported, he started collecting the coins after proposing his friends send him a little over $2,400 USD.
“We rise by lifting others, we are on the rise with lifting others for the past hundred years,” Davido said on Instagram. “So I want know who my friends be, all of my friends I want one million naira.”
The moment was just Davido in his “usual playful manner.” But, he also brought the joke to Twitter. Within hours, the money started coming in. And Davido kept social media users entertained with frequent screenshots of the bank account.
At one point he tweeted, “I’m actually crying. Just be good to pple man!!! God! I really love you guys man!!!”
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