It was not an instant hit in America. Davido released “Fall” in 2017, and it took more than a year for American listeners to catch up. By early 2019, it had become the longest-charting Nigerian pop song in Billboard history and one of the most searched songs on Shazam in the United States.
The song
“Fall” is a love song. Davido sings to a woman he wants to keep, promising not to let her fall. The beat, produced by Kiddominant, is gentle and mid-tempo, with a melody that is easy to hum. It was a departure from the high-energy party songs many associated with him.
Kiddominant
Kiddominant, the Nigerian producer behind the beat, became known for crafting smooth, melodic Afrobeats. The success of “Fall” raised his profile, and he later received an RIAA certification plaque for his work on it.
The video
The music video, set in a colourful, playful world, attracted hundreds of millions of views on YouTube over the following years, making it one of the most watched Nigerian music videos.
American breakthrough
In January 2019, “Fall” was among the top 100 most Shazamed songs in America and a top-ten Shazam record in New York. It was played on American radio and appeared on Billboard charts, where it set a record for a Nigerian pop song’s longevity.
Certification
“Fall” was certified gold in the United States, and reports describe it as the first Afrobeats single to reach that level there. It later reached platinum status in the US and Canada, and it was certified diamond in France.
A Good Time
The song appeared on Davido’s 2019 album A Good Time, his second studio album, which also included hits such as “If” and “Blow My Mind” with Chris Brown.
What it meant
Before “Fall”, many people in the American music industry saw Afrobeats as a niche. Songs like “Fall”, along with Wizkid’s collaboration with Drake on “One Dance” and the later success of Burna Boy and Tems, helped change that view.
Davido’s place
Davido, born David Adeleke in Atlanta and raised in Lagos, had been one of Nigeria’s biggest stars since his 2011 hit “Dami Duro”. By the time “Fall” came out, he had a large African following and had signed with Sony Music. What he did not yet have was a song that American listeners discovered on their own. “Fall” gave him that. Its success was driven less by marketing than by word of mouth, clubs, DJs and Shazam searches from people who heard it somewhere and wanted to know what it was. That kind of organic growth is what record labels hope for and rarely get.
Davido has bigger party songs and more celebrated albums. “Fall” may still be the one that did the most for Afrobeats, because it proved that an African love song could grow its audience slowly and keep it.
