Afropolitan

At 16, Mannywellz went to get his learner's permit. His mom sat him down and told him he couldn't. He didn't have papers.
A few years later the college bills came in at $20,000 to $50,000 and there was no way to pay them. So he told his family to put his younger sister through school instead. He would sing.
Mannywellz (Emmanuel Ajomale) moved from Nigeria to Maryland at 9, taught himself to produce on Fruity Loops, and built a sound that sits between Afrobeats, R&B, soul and gospel. He made "Peace" with Tems before most of the world knew her name, has records with Wale, toured with Jidenna, and is one of the DACA artists on the Grammy-winning album American Dreamers. He's fully independent, and his catalog pays his bills.
In this episode we get into what one independent song really costs (from $2,500 to $30,000), paying producers in ownership when you can't pay in cash, why "nothing is usually as organic as it seems," quitting a bank job over a record deal that didn't exist, how "Peace" with Tems came together, getting dropped by his distributor right before his biggest run, and what therapy told him about carrying too much.
Become a Member of The Room (Afropolitan Private Membership)
Join our private community for deeper insights and exclusive content: https://www.patreon.com/c/Afropolitanpodcast
EPISODE SPONSORS
Zobo Money — Zobo is a money transfer app built for Africans in the diaspora. It lets you send money from the US, UK, and Europe to countries like Nigeria, Cameroon, Ghana, and more. https://www.zobo.money/afropolitan
BONUS OFFER: Use code AFROPOLITAN and get a $10 bonus when you sign up, complete your KYC, and send $50 or more to Africa.
Hisa — Hisa is an all-investments platform that lets you invest in Nigerian stocks, US stocks and ETFs from one app. https://invite.hisa.co/7fkf/AFROPOLITAN
BONUS OFFER: Use code AFROPOLITAN and get your first two trades commission-free.
CONVO BY AFROPOLITAN
Book 1:1 calls with Africa's boldest thinkers: https://convo.vip/
WHERE TO FIND MANNYWELLZ
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mannywellz
X/Twitter: https://x.com/Mannywellz
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/MannywellzTV
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Mannywellzz
Website: https://mannywellz.com
All links: https://www.fvr.fan/mannywellz
AFROPOLITAN
Twitter/X: https://x.com/afropolitan
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/afropolitanpodcast
Newsletter: https://www.afropolitan.io/newsletter
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/Afropolitanpodcast
TIMESTAMPS
0:00 "I found out I didn't have papers when I was 16"
1:51 The biggest misconception about going independent
3:40 "I don't hate deals. I just hate unfair deals"
4:43 Born in Nigeria, raised in Maryland by a gospel songwriter
5:57 Asa, Ryan Leslie and teaching himself to make beats
7:18 Fusing Lagos and America before it was a lane
9:16 What independence actually costs
10:10 The DC couple who taught him publishing and masters
11:47 Why viral moments fizzle without infrastructure
13:45 The real budget to get one song off the ground
15:41 When producers charged $100,000 a beat
16:05 Mixing, from $50 to $5,000 a track
17:13 Pay in ownership when you can't pay in cash
18:21 The No I.D. and Brent Faiyaz story
19:29 A friend's first $600 publishing check
20:19 Videos, stylists and a $5,000 creative director quote
23:56 Photo shoots and usage rights
25:10 What can $5,000 of marketing really buy?
25:43 Dating the algorithm
26:33 "Nothing is usually as organic as it seems"
26:56 Follow Eche and Chika on Snapchat
27:36 The Room on Patreon
28:28 Sponsor: Zobo Money
29:13 Sponsor: Hisa
30:20 Pink Sweat$ and the team behind "Honesty"
34:54 Losing his voice in the middle of a tour
36:17 Finding out at 16, and choosing not to hide
38:47 Giving his college shot to his sister
39:22 Fans in London and Lagos he couldn't fly to see
40:23 Four days at Ledo Pizza, four hours at DKNY
42:45 Why he couldn't keep a job past six months
43:45 Quitting the bank over a record deal that didn't exist
44:32 The pandemic taught him what money is
44:57 How "Peace" with Tems came together
49:18 What it feels like to have a hit
49:46 "I have the hit. It just hasn't been received"
52:38 Wasn't the spotlight a risk?
54:44 When a border officer asked him to sing
55:43 Why he passed on Substack
57:43 Small Chops, the starter before the album
58:59 Back in Lagos after 18 years
1:00:17 Too American for Nigeria, too Nigerian for America?
1:04:02 Why Lagos is his top streaming city
1:05:40 The lesson that cost him the most
1:07:45 How his parents took him leaving school
1:09:30 Buying a house with his mom
1:10:43 The question he wishes people asked
1:13:03 Rapid fire
1:17:09 What therapy told him
1:18:48 Learning to rest
1:19:44 Who should be in this chair next

Mayorkun was two months from being homeless when Mama dropped. The first check from that song went straight to rent.
A year earlier he was in a bank's marketing department, opening accounts. He posted a short piano cover only because his phone was out of storage and he planned to delete it. Davido saw it and sent a DM: send me your number. Then two weeks of silence. The message that changed his life landed on WhatsApp as he walked back to his seat after leading praise and worship in church: pack your load and come.
Ten years later, Mayorkun is the Mayor of Lagos. Albums including The Mayor of Lagos and Back in Office, hits from Eleko and Mama to Of Lagos and Betty Butter, and B4 B4 with Davido and FOLA on Davido's 2026 album Oriadé.
In this episode we get into the lawyer Davido paid for so Mayorkun wouldn't sign his deal blind, why blowing up is "light work" compared to staying, the 2 years he stopped writing clever lyrics because it felt like no one was listening, why he says most streaming numbers are doctored, the bank that later paid him more for one show than he'd have earned there in 5 years, and the 18 hours he lasted in London before wanting to come home.
Become a Member of The Room (Afropolitan Private Membership)
Join our private community for deeper insights and exclusive content: https://www.patreon.com/c/Afropolitanpodcast
EPISODE SPONSORS
Zobo Money — Zobo is a money transfer app built for Africans in the diaspora. It lets you send money from the US, UK, and Europe to countries like Nigeria, Cameroon, Ghana, and more. https://www.zobo.money/afropolitan
BONUS OFFER: Use code AFROPOLITAN and get a $10 bonus when you sign up, complete your KYC, and send $50 or more to Africa.
Hisa — Hisa is an all-investments platform that lets you invest in Nigerian stocks, US stocks and ETFs from one app. https://invite.hisa.co/7fkf/AFROPOLITAN
BONUS OFFER: Use code AFROPOLITAN and get your first two trades commission-free.
CONVO BY AFROPOLITAN
Book 1:1 calls with Africa's boldest thinkers: https://convo.vip/
WHERE TO FIND MAYORKUN
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/iammayorkun
X/Twitter: https://x.com/Mayorkun
Snapchat: https://www.snapchat.com/add/mayorkunn
Website: https://www.mayorkun.com
AFROPOLITAN
Twitter/X: https://x.com/afropolitan
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/afropolitanpodcast
Newsletter: https://www.afropolitan.io/newsletter
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/Afropolitanpodcast
TIMESTAMPS
0:00 "I was two months to be homeless"
1:41 The biggest myth about staying relevant
3:08 "I'm not cosplaying any madness for clicks"
3:49 Why he never plans a song before the studio
5:48 The girl who heard his song 30 times before release
6:36 Eleko did 1 million views in 7 days. The party didn't know it
8:04 Staying is harder than blowing up
8:56 Is Afrobeats going through a weird time?
11:57 Giving away songs that didn't sound like him anymore
13:33 The hits he wrote for others and won't name
14:19 The most expensive part of his career
16:56 Davido made him get a lawyer and paid for it
17:46 Long-term business with long-term people
20:59 Join The Room on Patreon
21:50 Sponsor: Zobo Money
22:35 Sponsor: Hisa
23:42 Learning about riders the hard way
25:58 What it costs a new artist to get a chance now
27:17 A million eyes and the low phase he climbed out of
28:45 The 2 years he stopped writing clever lyrics
30:52 PR budgets that could shoot 5 videos
32:22 Standing on his own after Davido
34:22 Two months from homeless when Mama dropped
36:01 Why he hid his mum's identity at university
37:28 Leaving the bank: "Can't you do it part-time?"
39:32 The video he almost deleted to free up storage
40:20 Davido's DM at his boss's desk
41:57 The WhatsApp message after praise and worship
43:59 The day the bank paid him to perform
45:48 Of Lagos: insulted overnight, number one by morning
46:37 Would Mayorkun ever japa?
49:29 2020: five hits in five different lanes
53:14 "You can't be mysterious" anymore
54:31 Why he prefers the pre-streaming days
55:32 The hood test for a real number one song
56:11 The Snapchat money he was late to
57:49 Making B4 B4 at 1 a.m.
1:00:41 "Nobody knows the hits"
1:03:21 Touring the UK and US vs performing at home
1:06:36 Rapid fire
1:08:59 The version of him still at the bank
1:09:44 What to ask before signing to a big label
1:10:17 Fame is the most overrated part of success
1:12:30 Who should be in this chair next
1:13:05 The Sony deal

He had 4 hours to empty a beach club with 5 swimming pools. The bulldozers were already working down the shore. He puts the loss at over ₦2 billion, and says compensation didn't cover 2% of it.
Ten years earlier, Uber's launch lead walked into his club and asked for 3,000 cars. There were no cars. Just an app on a Lenovo laptop. "I can make you t-shirts. I can make you face caps. I didn't think about equity."
Adewunmi Adebesin, better known as Bankhead, has spent 21 years in hospitality and entertainment. He was running Rehab at 20, turned Sunday into a party day with Grill at the Pent, and built Truth Beach Club. Now he's building FanVault, a subscription platform that pays African creators in their own currencies.
In this episode we get into the hostesses who made ₦10 million in 2 months reselling his wristbands, the ₦60,000 weekly yam bill for 9 tubers, why he runs nightlife like a cartel, the day he passed on signing Davido, and why he thinks a ₦200 subscription beats a million views.
Become a Member of The Room (Afropolitan Private Membership)
Join our private community for deeper insights and exclusive content: https://www.patreon.com/c/Afropolitanpodcast
EPISODE SPONSORS
Zobo Money — Zobo is a money transfer app built for Africans in the diaspora. It lets you send money from the US, UK, and Europe to countries like Nigeria, Cameroon, Ghana, and more. https://www.zobo.money/afropolitan
BONUS OFFER: Use code AFROPOLITAN and get a $10 bonus when you sign up, complete your KYC, and send $50 or more to Africa.
Hisa — Hisa is an all-investments platform that lets you invest in Nigerian stocks, US stocks and ETFs from one app. https://invite.hisa.co/7fkf/AFROPOLITAN
BONUS OFFER: Use code AFROPOLITAN and get your first two trades commission-free.
CONVO BY AFROPOLITAN
Book 1:1 calls with Africa's boldest thinkers: https://convo.vip/
WHERE TO FIND BANKHEAD
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thatbankheadboy
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/adebesin-adewunmi-92299875/
FANVAULT
Website: https://fanvault.vip/
AFROPOLITAN
Twitter/X: https://x.com/afropolitan
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/afropolitanpodcast
Newsletter: https://www.afropolitan.io/newsletter
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/Afropolitanpodcast
TIMESTAMPS
0:00 Four hours to move out
2:25 The biggest myth about opening a club
3:20 Who nightlife is really built for
4:13 The creator economy: $3B now, $17B by 2030
5:26 "Creativity is unlimited in Africa. Monetization is a problem."
5:58 Why he calls it modern day slavery
6:57 The ₦200 subscription math
8:02 Do Nigerians really not pay for content?
12:38 Why Twitch and OnlyFans can't take naira
14:16 Why are we watching Tesla ads?
14:59 Pay in shillings, get paid in naira
16:37 The Room on Patreon
17:28 Sponsor: Zobo Money
18:16 Sponsor: Hisa
19:43 Running Nigeria's biggest club at 20
21:34 The only job he ever had (4 weeks)
22:55 Booking Dotstar with no money to pay him
25:22 Passing on Davido
26:58 Before Lagos partied on Sundays
27:47 Fill an empty rooftop, take 20%
29:12 What Gen Z changed about nightlife
31:44 Why strict rules built the best clubs
32:31 Run the club like a cartel
33:50 Name 40 ways to steal from this business
34:36 The hostesses who made ₦10M in 2 months
39:03 Where the stolen money was hiding
41:44 Threatened at knifepoint for catching thieves
44:09 ₦60,000 of yam for 9 tubers
45:47 How kitchens recycle oil with baking powder
47:04 The coastal road comes for Landmark
47:56 The building that wasn't marked
49:06 The phone call that changed everything
50:10 "We lost over 2B"
50:50 The weeks he didn't pick up his phone
53:46 When connections stop working
55:25 Why he still smiles on the coastal road
57:09 Can you build generational wealth here?
58:26 The concession playbook
59:21 Why Ilashe beach houses won't last
1:03:23 "I started Uber in this country"
1:04:15 "I need 3,000 cars"
1:06:00 The 10% of Uber Nigeria he never asked for
1:08:52 Dashboard money
1:11:27 Why club money hits a ceiling
1:12:01 800 women and mocktails
1:14:28 Why Nollywood legends end up crowdfunding
1:17:18 Is Pella bigger than Kai Cenat in Africa?
1:20:10 Davido's ₦20M Twitch problem
1:21:33 The Cardi B content model
1:24:21 Pornhub vs OnlyFans: the $7.6B lesson
1:27:40 Will your audience follow you off YouTube?
1:31:13 The Onitsha marketer model
1:32:29 ₦22M in one hour
1:34:19 Revenue splits built into every post
1:37:02 Asleep by 9pm after 21 years
1:43:50 Rapid fire
1:44:46 The $20K tip from a man who wanted tea
1:45:44 His most expensive mistake
1:48:39 The debtor who sent ₦50M by mistake
1:49:45 A blacklist for club debtors
1:54:13 Who should be in this chair next
1:57:07 What Gege left on the table

40 million people have a government ID and no bank account. Olu Akanmu's fix: lock the regulators, the banks and the fintechs in one room and give them 3 months to go and find them.

During the cashless crunch, a bank that needed more server capacity had to write a board paper, get approval, source dollars, import the server, clear it through customs and install it. 3 to 4 months. OPay could look at capacity at 9pm, see 70%, and add 40% by morning. Traders in Balogun started telling customers to get OPay so they could be paid.

Olu was President and Co-CEO of OPay Nigeria from 2021 to 2023. Before that he was the third Nigerian hired for MTN's commercial launch, ran retail banking at Bank PHB and FCMB, and was CMO at Airtel. He started out as a pharmacist at Glaxo. Today he's academic director of the Lagos Business School Tech-Leap Initiative.

In this episode we get into the POS machine that costs 5% of a bank branch, why MTN sent its South African team home one month after launch, Airtel's 3G towers in places with no smartphones, the ₦10 million he'd put in a dollar bond at 30, and why digital payments grew from 22% to 56% while access to credit went from 2% to 6%.

Become a Member of The Room (Afropolitan Private Membership)
Join our private community for deeper insights and exclusive content: https://www.patreon.com/c/Afropolitanpodcast

EPISODE SPONSORS
Zobo Money — Zobo is a money transfer app built for Africans in the diaspora. It lets you send money from the US, UK, and Europe to countries like Nigeria, Cameroon, Ghana, and more. https://www.zobo.money/afropolitan
BONUS OFFER: Use code AFROPOLITAN and get a $10 bonus when you sign up, complete your KYC, and send $50 or more to Africa.

Hisa — Hisa is an all-investments platform that lets you invest in Nigerian stocks, US stocks and ETFs from one app. https://invite.hisa.co/7fkf/AFROPOLITAN
BONUS OFFER: Use code AFROPOLITAN and get your first two trades commission-free.

CONVO BY AFROPOLITAN
Book 1:1 calls with Africa's boldest thinkers: https://convo.vip/

WHERE TO FIND OLU AKANMU
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/olu-akanmu-88280a/
X/Twitter: https://x.com/OluAkanmu
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/oluakanmu/

LAGOS BUSINESS SCHOOL TECH-LEAP INITIATIVE
Website: https://www.lbs.edu.ng/initiatives/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lbs_techleap/
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@LBSTech-LeapInitiative

AFROPOLITAN
Twitter/X: https://x.com/afropolitan
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/afropolitanpodcast
Newsletter: https://www.afropolitan.io/newsletter
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/Afropolitanpodcast

TIMESTAMPS
0:00 40 million people with an ID and no bank account
2:50 The biggest myth about scaling in Africa
3:48 The managers behind the famous founders
6:44 Two founders in: who do you hire next?
8:45 The 21,000 agent ceiling OPay blew past
10:12 How business school teaches you to exclude half the market
12:03 A POS machine is 5% of the cost of a branch
13:44 Selling mobile to a country with 0.4 lines per 100 people
16:48 When 4 out of 5 Nigerians wanted to be on MTN
19:43 Influencer marketing is mercenary marketing
21:33 The Room on Patreon
23:04 Sponsor: Zobo Money
23:49 Sponsor: Hisa
24:58 What winners in telecoms, banking and fintech all do
27:35 Big Brother influencers and the wrong customer
28:38 "We're in the era of Indomie marketing"
30:48 From Glaxo pharmacist to banker
32:25 The evening Bank PHB came for a telco guy
35:00 "Give me two weeks": Googling retail banking
37:10 What foreign companies get wrong about Nigeria
38:05 Airtel's 3G towers in places with no smartphones
40:34 MTN sent the South Africans home a month after launch
42:32 Why Chinese managers show up in Balogun market
44:09 The cashless policy and OPay's 6x growth
46:05 Board papers, customs and a 4 month wait for a server
47:46 Adding 40% capacity overnight
49:42 Eche's two-minute OPay account test
52:46 Redesigning Nigeria's payments stack from scratch
57:28 The banking lobby vs the telco route
59:24 Lock them in a room for 3 months
1:01:29 Is Nigeria hard, or does it punish ignorance?
1:04:25 3 things to know before building wealth in Nigeria
1:06:23 30 years old with ₦10 million: what he'd do
1:08:05 Omoluwabi and the price of a good name
1:11:49 Compounding, excellence and peace of mind
1:14:21 The maths teacher who became a professor
1:16:03 Nigerian tech and the printing press
1:18:48 Rapid fire: beans, telecoms and "too late"
1:22:59 What the second seat learns that founders miss
1:25:01 Why big banks can't build fintechs
1:29:22 Payments grew. Credit didn't.
1:31:08 What credit does for a trader in the market
1:32:56 Who should be in this chair next
1:34:51 Would he go into politics?

For six months he lay in a hospital bed while the internet decided he had fallen off. "He doesn't shoot no more." "Nobody rocks with him anymore." "He has outpriced himself out of the market." He was fighting for his life.
The first kidney came from his brother. After a seven-hour surgery, the doctors came back with the news: no flow, his body wouldn't take it, and it had to come out. Before they wheeled him back into theatre he posted online and said what he believed was his last prayer. "God, let your will be done."
TG Omori is the Headies-winning director behind some of the defining videos of modern Afrobeats, from the Marlian era with Naira Marley to Asake's run of Terminator, Bandana and Organise. He started out making whole videos on ₦2 million budgets. Today a single video can run past $100,000.
In this episode we get into why a director can take a big budget and still go home with nothing, the year he and Asake worked like "two people in one body" with no treatments and no revisions, why he dropped his public fight for 10% of music video streams, what dialysis really costs in Nigeria (about ₦31 million a year), the "pull me on" texts from friends still in the hood, and why every day is a good day for greatness.
Become a Member of The Room (Afropolitan Private Membership)
Join our private community for deeper insights and exclusive content: https://www.patreon.com/c/Afropolitanpodcast
EPISODE SPONSORS
Zobo Money — Zobo is a money transfer app built for Africans in the diaspora. It lets you send money from the US, UK, and Europe to countries like Nigeria, Cameroon, Ghana, and more. https://www.zobo.money/afropolitan
BONUS OFFER: Use code AFROPOLITAN and get a $10 bonus when you sign up, complete your KYC, and send $50 or more to Africa.
Hisa — Hisa is an all-investments platform that lets you invest in Nigerian stocks, US stocks and ETFs from one app. https://invite.hisa.co/7fkf/AFROPOLITAN
BONUS OFFER: Use code AFROPOLITAN and get your first two trades commission-free.
CONVO BY AFROPOLITAN
Book 1:1 calls with Africa's boldest thinkers: https://convo.vip/
WHERE TO FIND TG OMORI
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/boy_director
X/Twitter: https://x.com/boy_director
Website: https://tgomori.com
AFROPOLITAN
Twitter/X: https://x.com/afropolitan
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/afropolitanpodcast
Newsletter: https://www.afropolitan.io/newsletter
Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/c/Afropolitanpodcast
TIMESTAMPS
0:00 "I said my last prayer"
1:52 The biggest myth about music video directors
2:52 Why directors go home with nothing
4:22 Why a $100,000 video pays more in Lagos than LA
5:59 The hidden cost of shooting in Lagos
6:52 Area boys at 3 a.m. on a private set
10:44 The video that made him feel he'd arrived
12:58 "It was a cult": first taste of real fame
14:25 Organise and the poetry of Parajanov
15:04 The backlash he got for shooting to the emotion
16:57 "I want to create madness"
19:00 Let directors have a system
21:34 When fans started following the director
22:25 He was supposed to be an actor
24:19 No new videos in 3 years, and the love stayed
26:17 The Room on Patreon
27:06 Sponsor: Zobo Money
27:51 Sponsor: Hisa
29:47 Why artists leave the director who made them
33:46 Why stars stop jumping for the camera
35:35 "I had the best of Asake's years"
37:43 The Asake run, video after video
38:36 "Two people in one body"
42:52 The first cut that went straight to YouTube
44:54 The video where he couldn't read Asake anymore
46:28 When artists outgrow the people who got them out
48:20 Nothing is permanent. Build your own ecosystem
51:40 The chapter of his life he couldn't direct
54:47 The diagnosis
56:33 "You don't have insurance. Go back to Nigeria"
57:43 In hospital while people said he fell off
59:09 His brother's kidney
59:47 "My body is not accepting it"
1:01:47 Why he couldn't call his mum
1:02:47 A second transplant
1:03:36 200,000 messages and a deactivated Instagram
1:08:57 Shoot every video like it's your last
1:10:20 What dialysis really costs in Nigeria
1:12:01 A $2.5 million transplant insurance wouldn't cover
1:14:22 His dad's ₦50K salary
1:18:47 The business of music videos for young directors
1:22:58 "When you're in demand, they'll pay"
1:26:03 The lesson that cost him the most
1:28:06 "Every day is a good day for greatness"
1:30:48 Why he fought for 10% of video streams
1:33:24 Why he dropped the royalty fight
1:36:02 Before your body sends you the bill
1:38:22 Rapid fire
1:39:05 The people Afrobeats doesn't credit enough
1:41:07 The Asake song he wishes he shot
1:42:49 Survivor's guilt
1:44:42 He didn't know directing existed until 16
1:45:57 "Put you on to my pain?"
1:48:03 Who should be in this chair next