Femi Dapson
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Femi Dapson | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | Femi Dapson 4 March 1997 Agege, Lagos State, Nigeria |
| Citizenship | Nigerian |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 2018–present |
| Known for | Founder of Nouvelle Films; producer of Rema's "Calm Down" |
| Website | femidapson |
Femi Dapson (born 4 March 1997) is a Nigerian film and music video producer, and the founder and executive producer of Nouvelle Films, a Lagos-based production company. He is best known for producing the music video for Rema's "Calm Down" (2022), which became the most-viewed Afrobeats music video on YouTube.[1][2] Through Nouvelle Films, he has produced music videos for artists including Burna Boy, Davido, Rema, Asake, Central Cee, and Shallipopi, as well as commercial content for brands including Sony Music, Columbia Records, Oraimo, and Meta.[3]
Early life
[edit]Femi Dapson was born on 4 March 1997 in Agege, Lagos State, Nigeria, and is originally from Oyo State.[4] He grew up in Idowu Egba, Igando, and has spoken publicly about experiencing significant financial hardship in childhood. He obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from the University of Lagos.[5]
Before entering the entertainment industry, Dapson worked a series of manual jobs, including as a factory worker and a cleaner at a church in Ota. In 2017, he filmed himself while working as a cleaner, expressing conviction that his circumstances would change; the video later went viral on social media and was cited across multiple Nigerian media profiles as emblematic of his perseverance.[4][3]
Career
[edit]Beginnings
[edit]Dapson began working in music video production within Nigeria's Afrobeats industry around 2018–2020. His first notable production credit was the music video for "Money Anthem" by Macjreyz, an artist signed to Mr Eazi's talent development initiative EmPawa Africa. The production budget for that video was approximately ₦800,000, considerably below the industry average for a basic music video at the time, and the project opened doors to further work in the industry.[1] During this period, he worked closely with Lagos-based photographer and director Perliks, gaining early experience in visual production, location management, and crew coordination.[6]
Writing in Afrocritik, journalist Emmanuel Okoro explained that Dapson's role as a producer, distinct from a director, covers the full logistical and organisational scope of a production, including location casting, crew management, budgeting, and post-production oversight, a function that Okoro noted is frequently misunderstood or conflated with the director's creative role in the Nigerian industry.[1]
Nouvelle Films and rise to prominence
[edit]In 2020, Dapson founded Nouvelle Films, a full-service production company based in Lagos specialising in music videos, commercials, and documentary content.[1][3]
His breakthrough came with the music video for Rema's "Calm Down" (2022), produced in collaboration with director Director K. The video accompanied a song that became the first Afrobeats track to surpass one billion streams on Spotify, and its remix with Selena Gomez later won the inaugural MTV Video Music Award for Best Afrobeats Video.[2] The video won The Headies Award for Best Music Video at the 16th Headies Awards in 2023, an award presented to its director; Dapson served as producer of the video.[1][2] In the same awards cycle, Dapson received a nomination in the same category as producer of Blaqbonez's "Back in Uni", a video that Afrocritik described as requiring particular technical precision, with Blaqbonez portraying multiple real-life Nigerian industry figures and demanding close attention to costuming, lighting, and set design throughout.[1]
Afrocritik described Dapson as one of Nigeria's award-winning music video producers and noted his standing among the most sought-after producers for high-budget Afrobeats productions.[1] His subsequent portfolio included work with Burna Boy ("City Boy", "Update"), Davido featuring YG Marley ("Awuke"), Kizz Daniel ("Cough (Odo)"), Pheelz featuring BNXN ("Finesse"), and Asake with Central Cee ("Wave").[1][6]
Dapson has collaborated with several internationally active music video directors on Nigerian productions, among them Daps (the Nigerian-British director also known as Flex God), Edgar Esteves, Meji Alabi, UAX, and Rob Dade.[6] Premium Times reported in 2026 that production budgets for his projects had reached as high as ₦246 million, with crews of up to 200 people on a single shoot.[3]
Commercial work
[edit]Through Nouvelle Films, Dapson has produced commercial campaigns for major brands, including Meta AI ("Make Am AI" TVC), Oraimo (Spacepods campaign featuring Burna Boy), and an official theme video for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.[7] Sony Music and Columbia Records have also partnered with Nouvelle Films for campaigns in Nigeria.[3]
Selected filmography
[edit]| Year | Title | Artist | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | "Calm Down" | Rema | The Headies Award for Best Music Video (2023); most-viewed Afrobeats music video on YouTube |
| 2022 | "Back in Uni" | Blaqbonez | Nominated, The Headies Award for Best Music Video (2023) |
| 2022 | "Cough (Odo)" | Kizz Daniel | |
| 2022 | "Finesse" | Pheelz feat. BNXN | |
| 2022 | "City Boy" | Burna Boy | |
| 2022 | "Charm" | Rema | |
| 2022 | "Gwagwalada" | BNXN, Kizz Daniel & Seyi Vibez | |
| 2023 | "Wave" | Asake feat. Central Cee | Directed by Edgar Esteves; produced by Dapson |
| 2024 | "Awuke" | Davido feat. YG Marley | Directed by Daps |
| 2025 | "Update" | Burna Boy | |
| 2025 | "Kelebu" | Rema |
Awards and nominations
[edit]| Year | Award | Category | Role | Result | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | The Headies | Best Music Video ("Calm Down" – Rema) | Producer | Won | [1][2] |
| 2023 | The Headies | Best Music Video ("Back in Uni" – Blaqbonez) | Producer | Nominated | [1] |
| 2024 | The Future Awards Africa | Film Category | Nominated | [6] | |
| 2024 | Gleamz Awards | Young Achiever of the Year | Nominated | [8] |
Personal life
[edit]Dapson became engaged to Nigerian lifestyle content creator and fashion influencer Simi Sanya in July 2025, following a public proposal covered by Nigerian media outlets including BellaNaija and Pulse Nigeria.[9] The couple held a court wedding ceremony in February 2026 and a traditional wedding ceremony in March 2026.[10]
Outside of production, Dapson participates in mentorship and public speaking activities aimed at young Nigerians interested in careers in the creative industries. In 2025, Nouvelle Films collaborated with PEFTI Film Institute on an intensive music video production workshop.[11]
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Okoro, Emmanuel (21 October 2023). "The Fun Projects Are the Most Challenging: Femi Dapson, on Securing a Spot as a Top Music Video Producer in Nigeria". Afrocritik. Retrieved 26 November 2025.
- 1 2 3 4 Lynch, Joe (4 September 2023). "Headies Awards 2023: Full Winners List, Rema, Burna Boy Lead". Billboard. Retrieved 26 November 2025.
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Music video producer Femi Dapson reveals how much he charges per project". Premium Times. 16 February 2026. Retrieved 16 February 2026.
- 1 2 Oni, Tife (5 October 2023). "I Knew Cleaning Wasn't My Last Stop in Life". Zikoko!. Retrieved 26 November 2025.
- ↑ "How Femi Dapson Went From Factory Work To Producing Hit Music Videos". Piggyvest Blog. 16 October 2023. Retrieved 26 November 2025.
- 1 2 3 4 Ezema, Patrick (5 December 2024). "Interview: Femi Dapson On What It Means To Be A Music Video Producer". The Culture Custodian. Retrieved 26 November 2025.
- ↑ "Nouvelle Films". nouvellefilms.tv. Retrieved 26 November 2025.
- ↑ "Gleamz Awards Nomination Category". Gleamz Awards. 2024. Retrieved 26 November 2025.
- ↑ "The Sweetest Proposal! Femi Dapson Asks Simi Sanya to Be His Forever". BellaNaija. 22 July 2025. Retrieved 26 November 2025.
- ↑ "Simi Sanya, Femi Dapson 'legally hitched' after Valentine billboards gesture". The Guardian. Lagos, Nigeria. 20 February 2026. Retrieved 20 February 2026.
- ↑ "PEFTI and Nouvelle Film Collaborate on Intensive Music Video Production Workshop". Nollywood Reporter. 6 June 2025. Retrieved 26 November 2025.