After 5ive, Davido Returns With “I Know Who I Be”
Davido has ended a brief and unexpected hiatus with the release of “I Know Who I Be,” his first single of 2026, a cross continental record that pairs the Afrobeats heavyweight with South African artistes Jazzwrld and GL_Ceejay.
The Nigerian singer, born David Adeleke, announced the release on his social media pages on Friday, and the song is now available on major streaming platforms, including Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube Music. The official music video premiered the same day on YouTube, giving fans both the audio and visual on one rollout.
The track is notable for more than its sound. It marks the first collaboration between Davido and Jazzwrld and deepens a creative thread that has run through Afrobeats for several years, the growing exchange between Nigerian and South African music scenes. That crossover has shaped some of the genre’s biggest recent moments, and the choice of two South African collaborators places “I Know Who I Be” firmly within that pattern.
The timing carries weight. Davido told fans in May that he would be taking a short break from music, and before this release his last solo track was “Be There Still,” which came out in March 2025. A return within weeks of announcing a pause has fuelled speculation about what comes next. Davido announced the single with the line “the journey to the throne begins,” and he and his inner circle changed their profile pictures to crown imagery, fuelling album speculation almost immediately.
Context explains the confidence. “I Know Who I Be” is Davido’s first new music since 5ive, his fifth studio album, released on 18 April 2025 through Davido Music Worldwide, Columbia Records, and Sony Music Entertainment. The project was a commercial and chart success. 5ive amassed more than 12 million streams on its first day, debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard World Albums chart, and placed 16 songs in the top 50 of the U.S. Afrobeats Songs chart. In the United Kingdom, it entered at Number 7, the highest charting album of Davido’s career to date. In Nigeria, it set the record for the most single day Spotify streams for any album in 2025, with 9.3 million.
The “throne” theme also reflects a longer career journey. Davido rose to prominence with “Dami Duro” in 2012 and, through projects such as Omo Baba Olowo, A Good Time, A Better Time and Timeless, has played a leading role in taking Nigerian music to a global audience. His international profile has continued to grow, with the new single arriving shortly after his performance at the opening concert of the 2026 FIFA World Cup countdown series in Los Angeles.
Whether “I Know Who I Be” is a standalone release or the beginning of a larger project remains unclear. The crown imagery and “journey to the throne” message strongly suggest a wider campaign, but Davido has yet to officially confirm a new album. For now, the song serves as both a statement of intent and another example of the growing creative partnership between Nigerian and South African artistes, with attention now turning to its performance on streaming platforms and radio in the coming weeks.