{"id":17534,"date":"2018-10-24T18:51:46","date_gmt":"2018-10-24T16:51:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pan-african-music.com\/?p=17534"},"modified":"2020-04-27T03:37:02","modified_gmt":"2020-04-27T02:37:02","slug":"the-return-of-duncan-mighty-in-5-songs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/pan-african-music.com\/en\/the-return-of-duncan-mighty-in-5-songs\/","title":{"rendered":"Chronicling the return of Duncan Mighty in 5 songs"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Duncan Mighty is everywhere.<\/span><\/h3>\n

Duncan Mighty entered the Nigerian music space in 2008 with<\/span> \u201cKoliwater\u201d. Before then, he has been singing in church. \u201cKoliwater\u201d<\/span> was mildly celebrated, the leading tracks <\/span>Ijeoma,<\/span><\/i> Ako Na Uche<\/span><\/i> and <\/span>Scatter My Dada<\/span><\/i> enjoyed radio plays in the eastern part of Nigeria. However, <\/span>it wasn\u2019t until 2011 that he became a sort of mini-celebrity with the release of his sophomore album \u201cAhamefuna (Legacy)\u201d, with hit tracks like <\/span>Obianuju<\/span><\/i> and <\/span>Port Harcourt Son<\/span><\/i> pushing his fanbase and winning him the \u201cIndigenous Artist of the Year\u201d at the Nigerian Entertainment Awards. He followed up with <\/span>\u00a0\u201cFootprints\u201d <\/span>(2012)<\/span>, \u201cGrace & Talent\u201d <\/span>(2014)<\/span> and \u201cThe Certificate\u201d <\/span>(2016)<\/span>. <\/span><\/p>\n

Mighty\u2019s influence in that pop era was hugely limited by his decision to remain in and make songs from his home base, Porthacourt. While contemporaries like 2Face, P Square and D\u2019banj were making waves, signing deals and headlining shows in Lagos, Duncan Mighty remained exclusively available to his fanbase in Port Harcourt. He, however, wasn\u2019t isolated, he collaborated with mainstream artists like Timaya, Wande Coal, and Phyno while maintaining his status as \u2018Port Harcourt’s First Son\u2019. <\/span><\/p>\n

The rise and voice of new artists in the industry sidelined Duncan\u2019s efforts over time. New acts like Yemi Alade, Reekado Banks, Kizz Daniel and Niniola took the centre stage that Duncan Mighty has consciously ignored, his fan base in the South trickled and new Lagos hits replaced his voice on the playlists. His decline was so smooth that by the end of 2016, we\u2019ve all forgotten about Ducan Mighty. Even his Port Harcourt fanbase was busy jamming to Phyno\u2019s <\/span>Fada Fada<\/span><\/i>. <\/span><\/p>\n

This year, while Wizkid\u2019s <\/span>Soco<\/span><\/i> and Davido\u2019s <\/span>Assurance<\/span><\/i> were making viral hits, the name, Duncan Mighty and his wonderful voice reappeared again on our charts and playlists. This time, he came down to Lagos to team up with the faces of Afrobeats to make back-to-back hits. His return is being widely celebrated on radio plays, social space and the best of 2018 playlists. The message was clear, Duncan Mighty is still game, not only that, he is breaking into the mainstream via the highlife influenced Afropop he engineered and lost to the Lagos hustle sometimes around 2011.<\/span><\/p>\n

In these five songs, we try to look at Duncan\u2019s rendezvous in 2018. His first appearance was in February, with Wizkid and in that short while, he has collaborated with some of the best names in Nigerian popular music.<\/span><\/p>\n