Kizz Daniel has earned the title of undisputed ‘King of Bangers’ through consistent hit-making since his 2014 breakout. His strategy focuses on singles and extended plays (EPs) that dominate charts and streams, avoiding album pressures in Nigeria’s single-driven market.
Kizz Daniel, born Oluwatobiloba Daniel Anidugbe, started his music career in 2014 with the single ‘Woju.’ The track reached number one on local charts and marked his entry into Afropop. By 2016, he signed with Flyboy Inc., his label, after leaving G-Worldwide Entertainment. This move allowed him control over his releases.
His approach differs from many artists. In Nigeria, where listeners prefer singles, Kizz Daniel releases tracks and EPs. He avoids long albums with 15 or more songs, which often rely on one or two hits for streams. Instead, he focuses on quality over quantity.
Read also: Inside Nigeria’s first Afrobeats production academy
In 2024, he released the ‘TZA’ EP. It includes four tracks: ‘Twe Twe Remix,’ ‘Showa, ‘Sooner,’ and ‘Too Busy To Be Bae’ from 2023. Each song performs well. On Spotify, ‘Showa’ has over 32 million streams, ‘Sooner’ over 30 million, ‘Twe Twe’ boasts over 14 million, and ‘Too Busy To Be Bae’ has over 16 million. For an EP, these numbers stand out.
Kizz Daniel’s total Spotify streams exceed 1.3 billion, with over 1.1 million daily streams. ‘Cough (Odo),’ ‘Nesessari,’ and ‘Buga (Lo Lo Lo)’ each have over 100 million streams on the platform. On Boomplay, he has over one million streams across credits. These figures show his steady output pays off.
In 2023, Turntable Charts named him the only artist with multiple number-one songs on all Nigerian charts with ‘Lie,’ ‘Buga, and ‘Cough’ in that category.
He boasts over 1.4 billion YouTube views. ‘Cough’ and ‘Buga’ together reach nearly 500 million. The ‘Cough’ lyrics video has over 30 million views, and the visualizer over 19 million. Other videos include ‘Nesessari’ with 63 million views, ‘Madu’ with 43 million, ‘Oshe’ with 23 million, ‘RTID’ with 31 million, ‘Shu Peru’ at 23 million, and ‘Double’ at 21 million.
Collaborations also contribute to his success, with features with Davido performing well on the charts. ‘One Ticket’ has over 61 million YouTube views, ‘Woju’ boasts over 46 million, while ‘Twe Twe Remix’ has over 26 million views.
What sets Kizz Daniel apart
Kizz Daniel’s songs feature infectious rhythms that encourage dancing. He shares snippets on social media, often with dance steps. He invites influencers or artists to join, promoting his songs through videos.
His hit songs rely heavily on lyrics with simple repeatable phrases.
The lyrics are relatable with love, relationships, and daily life as their core, broadening his audience.
Viral dance challenges help from the snippet videos, which later transform to TikTok challenges. They draw from highlife and Caribbean ska, known for dance appeal. The use of social media also attests to his branding and marketing genius, setting trends with viral impact.
His career timeline over the years has shown growth. After ‘Woju’ in 2014, he released ‘New Era’ album in 2016. Hits like ‘Mama’ followed. In 2018, ‘No Bad Songz’ album hit streaming platforms with songs like ‘Madu’ and ‘One Ticket’ as the lead tracks.
Read also: Afrobeats, ancestry and ambition: The story of Italian-Nigerian singer, Onyeabor
In 2020, ‘King of Love’ album had ‘Ada’ and ‘Boys Are Bad,’ with the later becoming his 8th most streamed song on Spotify with over 34 million streams. Then the ‘Barnabas’ EP dropped in 2021 with ‘Lie’ and ‘Pour Me Water.’ After the ‘Buga’ hit song, Daniel released the ‘Maverick’ album in 2023 which featured ‘Cough’ and ‘RTID.’
Kizz Daniel avoids following trends, he sets them. He sticks to his Afropop roots and stays consistent building his loyal fan base globally. Industry experts say they have taken note of his understanding of the market.
Nigeria favours singles due to short attention spans and playlist culture. This makes most albums bearing the risk of having filler tracks that won’t get up to a million streams.
Laolu Aranmolate, a Nigerian music executive, said: “Nigeria is a single-driven market. The competition is stiff. It is a singles’ heavy market. It’s normal for albums to have filler tracks as long as fans keep streaming the hit songs.”
While some artists push long projects, Kizz Daniel’s focuses on yielding high per-song returns. Live performances add to his status. He is known to tour countries in Africa and beyond, selling out shows, whether in big or small capacity venues.
His journey from 2014 to now cements him as undisputed King of Bangers. Through strategy, he dominates.
