A United States District Court in Manhattan has given Nigerian artist Davido (real name David Adeleke) 21 days to respond to a copyright lawsuit accusing him of stealing a song.
The case was filed on April 4 by four Nigerian musicians—Martins Chukwuka Emmanuel, Abel Great Umaru, Kelvin Ayodele Campbell, and David Ovhioghena Umaru. They claim Davido copied their 2022 song Work to make his 2024 track Strawberry on Ice.
The lawsuit also names Sierra Leonean singer Emmerson (Emmerson Amidu Bockarie), who featured on Davido’s song, along with Carlos Jenkins, Matthew Quinney, Marques Miles II, and Wynn Records—the company that released and distributed the song.
According to court records, the original artists shared Work with Davido in January 2022, hoping he’d collaborate with them. But instead, they say Davido gave the song to Emmerson, who used parts of it—vocals and instrumentals—without permission to create Strawberry on Ice.
The plaintiffs claim that after months of trying to settle the matter privately, Davido agreed to a deal on March 14, 2025. The deal included a $45,000 payment and a royalty split: 40% for songwriting and 20% for the recording. However, they allege Davido did not meet the March 24 deadline to finalize the deal.
Now, they are demanding $150,000 in damages and legal rights to 40% of the song’s composition and 20% of the recording. They also want the court to stop Davido and his team from using the song again or doing anything similar in the future.
Davido has not made any public statements about the lawsuit yet.
Wynn Records also refused to comment when contacted by Peoples Gazette.
