Amaju Pinnick, the former president of the NFF, has filed a substantial lawsuit against Afrobeat singer Davido, seeking 2.3 billion Naira in damages and a four-day public apology for an alleged breach of contract related to his non-appearance at a show.
Pinnick, who owns Brownhill Investments Company Limited, the organizer of the annual “Warri Again?” concert, took the legal action, filing the suit labeled as EHC/183/2023 in the Delta State High Court in Effurun.
The claimant, represented by lawyer Kelechi Onwuegbuchulem, is seeking 2 billion Naira in damages from the singer and his music label, along with 150 million Naira for legal and professional fees and an additional 30 million Naira for the cost of filing the lawsuit.
Additionally, they are requesting a court order for Davido to publicly apologize on his social media accounts and in two national newspapers for four consecutive days to both the claimant and event attendees.
According to the claimant’s statement, Davido approached Pinnick at the Abuja Airport in early 2023, expressing his interest in being contracted for the 19th edition of the “Warri Again Concert” scheduled for October 6, 2023. Despite initial reluctance, Pinnick agreed to a 70 million Naira performance fee.
On April 6, 2023, 70 million Naira, equivalent to $94,500.00, was paid, and the defendants acknowledged the payment. A promotional video was also recorded by Davido. However, on the event day, he failed to appear.
The claimant alleges significant expenses for event promotions and advertisements, sending a formal reminder and flight details a week before the event, and making arrangements for a private jet to transport Davido and his team. Despite these efforts, Davido and his team were unreachable on the day of the event, and the private jet remained available at the Lagos Airport in case they arrived later.
Consequently, Pinnick’s company seeks the full payment of $94,500 for the services contracted from Davido, which were not delivered.