Grammy-nominated Afrobeats sensation Davido has said his decision to wear pins bearing the names of 39 abducted children and seven teachers during his performance at the 2026 FIFA World Cup event was driven by a desire to spotlight their continued disappearance rather than protect Nigeria’s international image.
The singer, whose real name is David Adeleke, made the remarks during an interview with Focus on Africa host Waihiga Mwaura, which was shared on Sunday.
According to Davido, he believes the safety and wellbeing of innocent children should take priority over concerns about how the country is perceived globally.
“A lot of people don’t really want to talk about what goes on in my country simply because they want to protect the image, but there’s no image to protect if little kids are being kidnapped,” Davido said.
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He noted that although performing at the World Cup event was a significant honour, he felt it was important to use the opportunity to draw global attention to the security situation in Nigeria.
“As much as I was happy to do the World Cup, we also have to understand that there are things going on back home in our country, which we have the power to let the world know through our own means,” he said.
Davido further explained that his influence as a musician allows him to raise awareness about pressing issues affecting Nigerians, including the unresolved disappearance of the abducted students.
“When I say our own means, where’s my power? My power is in music, performances. We have these students that have been missing, still not found. So yeah, I use my platform to project what’s really going on,” he said.