Reekado Banks Opens Up: Leaving Mavin Records Too Soon Was Premature.

In a recent interview with Teddy A, the Afrobeats singer Reekado Banks admitted that his departure may have been a bit premature.

Nigerian Afrobeats sensation Ayoleyi Hanniel Solomon—better known by his stage name Reekado Banks—recently revisited his decision to exit Don Jazzy’s Mavin Records, candidly calling it a “premature” move.

Reekado Banks Echo Room Podcast interview

In a heartfelt clip from his appearance on the Echo Room Podcast, which was shared on Instagram, Reekado clarified that his departure wasn’t rooted in conflict. Rather, he was young, ambitious, and eager to carve out his own path in the music industry. His original three-year contract had expired two years before his exit, yet he stayed on—five years total—without renegotiating. When the time came, he simply felt ready to strike out on his own.

However, launching his independence exposed him to the harsh realities of running a music career solo, and he quickly realized how hasty the decision had been. “As soon as I jumped into the sea,” he confessed, “I understood how premature it all was.”

Mavin Records departure lessons

When asked to share the most memorable advice he’d received from Don Jazzy, Reekado laughed and recalled a moment that stung less like counsel and more like tough love: “It wasn’t even advice. He just said, ‘I’m not going to beat you.’ Nobody go beat me.”

Reflecting further in a July 2025 chat on The Esther Show, he opened up on the invaluable lessons his independence taught him—above all, accountability and self-reliance. He admitted: had he stayed at Mavin, he might have grown complacent, even entitled. Stepping out forced him to own every success and failure.

Reekado’s exit in 2018, he clarified, was amicable and filled with gratitude. He has consistently praised Don Jazzy for providing a powerful platform and treating him like a son during his early breakthrough years.