Poco Lee is due back at Snaresbrook Crown Court on September 15, 2026, for plea and trial preparation.
The case follows earlier reports concerning allegations against the dancer. His management and legal representatives have previously urged the public to allow the legal process to take its course.
Poco Lee has not been convicted of any offence, and the charges remain allegations.
Dolly Parton’s music is seeing renewed interest in Nigeria following the country music icon’s death on August 25, with two of her classic songs appearing on Spotify Nigeria’s Daily Top Songs chart for the first time in her career.
“Coat of Many Colors” debuted at No. 126 with 40,086 streams, while “Jolene” entered at No. 155 with 36,015 streams.
Parton also made her first appearance on Spotify Nigeria’s Daily Top Artists chart, debuting at No. 42.
The chart appearances come after Parton died at 80 following a brief battle with cancer. Her death prompted an international outpouring of tributes and renewed attention to her catalogue, including songs that have remained influential across generations.
Released in 1971, “Coat of Many Colors” is one of Parton’s most personal songs, drawing from her childhood and her family’s financial struggles. “Jolene,” released in 1973, became one of her signature songs and has since been covered and reinterpreted by artists across different generations and genres.
Their appearance on the Nigerian chart highlights the renewed reach of Parton’s catalogue following her death, extending beyond the country music audience that made her a global star.
Nigerian singer Siraheem, born Raheem Okoya, has announced his decision to stop releasing new music, describing the move as a “professional exit” from the music industry.
The singer shared the announcement in a statement on Wednesday, reflecting on a musical journey that began as a hobby with his friends before becoming a professional pursuit.
“My career began simply; music was a hobby I made with my boys as a means of bonding and connection before it was anything else,” he wrote.
According to Siraheem, balancing music with his other commitments has become increasingly difficult over the past year. He said he no longer feels able to give music the “effort, patience, and dedication” it deserves.
“So I owe it to my true fans, and to my colleagues in this industry, a professional exit. I have decided to stop putting out new music,” he said.
Siraheem’s music career included songs such as “Bad Bitch Syndrome” and “Credit Alert”, as well as collaborations with artists including Teni and Bloody Civilian. “Bad Bitch Syndrome Part II”, featuring Teni, Bloody Civilian and Deto Black, was released in May 2026.
His decision comes as he continues to balance music with his corporate responsibilities. Siraheem is an executive director at Eleganza Industrial City Limited, the company founded by his father, billionaire industrialist Razaq Okoya. Earlier this year, he discussed the difficulty of managing both careers, describing the executive role as demanding while also pursuing music.
Despite stepping away from music professionally, Siraheem said his creativity is not going anywhere. He plans to explore other creative fields and return with new ventures.
“The ‘Siraheem music’ era may be closing, but the creative in me is still hungry for new challenges,” he said.
He also revealed that he has an unreleased album recorded over the past year, which he considers some of his best material yet. While he has decided against putting out new music for now, he suggested the project could still be released in the future.
“Music still remains therapeutic for me,” he wrote. “With time, maybe the album finds its way into the world somehow after all.”
Siraheem thanked the fans, colleagues and supporters who invested in his music career, saying he was grateful for the opportunity to pursue the dream.
For now, the singer appears to be closing the music chapter while leaving the door open to whatever comes next.
Poco Lee’s team has denied reports that the Nigerian dancer is facing allegations of drink spiking in the UK.
In a statement on Tuesday, the team said “drink spiking” does not form part of the allegations or charges before the court and urged the public to disregard unverified reports.
Poco Lee, whose real name is Iweh Pascal Odinaka, is currently facing a UK court case over separate allegations. He is due to appear at Snaresbrook Crown Court on September 15, 2026.
His team stressed that the allegations remain unproven and that the case should be allowed to proceed through the legal process.
The Headies has unveiled the nominees for its 18th edition, with Wizkid, Ayra Starr, Mavo, Davido, Burna Boy, Asake and several of Nigeria’s leading artists featuring across the categories.
The nominations were announced on Tuesday, August 25, ahead of the ceremony, which will take place on October 25 in Toronto, Canada. The 18th edition is themed “Africa to the World,” marking another international outing for the Nigerian music awards.
Wizkid is among the most nominated artists this year, picking up six nominations. His 2024 album Morayo is in contention for Afrobeats Album of the Year, while he is also nominated for Digital Artiste of the Year, Best Male Artiste and Headies’ Viewers’ Choice. His collaborations with Asake on “MMS” and “Jogodo” are nominated for Song of the Year and Afrobeats Single of the Year respectively.
Ayra Starr has five nominations, including Song of the Year for “Hot Body”, Digital Artiste of the Year, Best Female Artiste, Best Performer (Live) for her Global Citizen Festival 2025 performance, and Headies’ Viewers’ Choice.
The nominations also give significant recognition to Mavo, who is shortlisted for Next Rated alongside Fido, Fola, Llona and Shoday. He is also nominated for Digital Artiste of the Year and Best Male Artiste.
Fola is another prominent name among the emerging acts, earning nominations for Next Rated, Digital Artiste of the Year, Best Male Artiste, Best R&B Album for Catharsis, and categories recognising his songs “You” and “Who Does That?”.
Elsewhere, Davido and Omah Lay’s “With You” is nominated for Song of the Year, Afrobeats Single of the Year and Best Recording of the Year, while Burna Boy’s No Sign of Weakness competes for Afrobeats Album of the Year. Burna Boy is also nominated for Best Male Artiste, with “Bundle by Bundle” receiving an Afrobeats Single of the Year nomination.
The Song of the Year category brings together Kunmie’s “Arike”, “Hey Jago” by Poco Lee, Shoday and Rahman Jago, Ayra Starr’s “Hot Body”, Fido’s “Joy Is Coming”, Asake and Wizkid’s “MMS”, and Davido and Omah Lay’s “With You”.
For Afrobeats Single of the Year, the nominees are Rema’s “Fun”, Asake and Wizkid’s “Jogodo”, Shallipopi’s “Laho”, Davido and Omah Lay’s “With You”, Fola’s “You”, and Burna Boy’s “Bundle by Bundle”.
The 2026 nominations follow an eligibility period covering music released between August 1, 2024 and April 30, 2026.
The 18th Headies will hold on October 25, 2026, in Toronto, Canada.
Meeting your favourite artist can be surreal. For one Ayra Starr fan, the moment apparently required a little physical verification.
During Ayra Starr’s “Starrgirl” fan signing pop-up in Camden, London, a fan shared a TikTok showing herself embracing the singer before pinching her.
Ayra immediately winced in pain, seemingly caught off guard by the unexpected pinch, while the fan appeared to be confirming that the singer was, in fact, real.
The interaction has since made its rounds online, turning what was already a memorable fan encounter into a particularly funny one.
Ayra was in Camden for the “Starrgirl” fan signing, with footage from the event showing her meeting fans and signing copies of her latest album.
The Camden appearance forms part of the rollout for Starrgirl, Ayra’s third studio album, which was released in August 2026. The project continues the singer’s evolution from the breakout success of “Rush” into one of Afrobeats’ most recognisable young stars.
For this fan, though, meeting Starrgirl wasn’t quite enough. She needed to make sure the Starrgirl in front of her wasn’t a very convincing hologram.
And apparently, a pinch was the best way to find out.
Nigerian rapper Blaqbonez has opened up about the events that led to his feud with fellow rapper Odumodublvck, revealing that he discovered the woman he had been intimate with was dating the rapper.
Speaking on the Nevon Podcast, Blaqbonez said he was unaware that the woman was in a relationship with Odumodublvck because he had never asked who else she was seeing.
According to him, the situation began when the woman sent him a message saying she could no longer continue their friendship. Blaqbonez said he felt the message was “performative” and believed she was trying to make it appear as though he was the one holding on to the relationship.
He eventually asked her directly who she was dating and discovered she was with Odumodublvck.
Blaqbonez said he chose to respect their relationship and walk away.
“You guys won’t hear from me again. I will respect everything that you guys have. Peace,” he recalled telling her.
However, he said the situation escalated when Odumodublvck contacted him shortly afterwards and asked whether he had been intimate with the woman.
Blaqbonez said he refused to provide details because he did not want to interfere with their relationship.
“I don’t know what she told you, so I can’t answer this question and affect anything that you guys have,” he recalled telling Odumodublvck.
According to Blaqbonez, Odumodublvck then responded: “Then we are enemies since you are not telling me. Peace out, bro.”
Blaqbonez described his relationship with the woman as a “friends with benefits” arrangement rather than a formal relationship.
“I can’t say we were dating or anything. It wasn’t official, but like, the best term to describe it would be like friends with benefits, right? Because we kind of like, were friends and we were intimate,” he said.
He said he subsequently asked Odumodublvck when his relationship with the woman had started, believing that the timeline would clarify whether there had been any overlap.
According to Blaqbonez, Odumodublvck refused to disclose when they had started dating, further escalating the tension between them.
Blaqbonez recounts his first conversation with Odumodublvck
Blaqbonez also recalled another conversation with Odumodublvck after the situation came to light.
“Then he calls me, and this time I pick up the call. I’m like ‘bro, what’s our problem’, then he says ‘you dey disturb my babe’,” he said.
Blaqbonez added that Odumodublvck sent him another message about five minutes later asking, “when last una f#ck?”
Blaqbonez’s team has also shared a screenshot of the WhatsApp conversation between the two rappers, providing a record of the exchange described during the interview.
Blaqbonez’s account offers his explanation of how the feud began and provides further context around the tension between the two rappers.
Davido has revealed that Wande Coal had been trying to reach him weeks before their recent exchange over the unreleased “Come My Way” collaboration.
Speaking during a TV interview shortly after the artists traded words on X, Davido said Wande had asked for his phone number about two weeks earlier. He said he instructed the person who received the request not to share it.
Davido also showed a screenshot of a WhatsApp conversation dated July 22. In the exchange, someone informed him that Wande had been asking for his number and asked whether they should give it to him.
According to Davido, he declined and said Wande was “acting like a baby.”
The revelation comes after the two artists publicly disagreed over “Come My Way”, a collaboration that gained attention through its unreleased snippet.
Davido previously explained that Wande had contacted him to record a verse for the song, but that he did not agree with the proposed plan to release Wande’s version first and add his contribution later as a remix.
Wande responded that Davido was trying to dictate the release of a song that was not his, adding that the song had already done well without him.
The exchange then became more personal, with Davido calling Wande “Mr Little 🍆” and Wande responding with “Mr. Toto beggar 😂.”
Davido’s latest comments add another layer to the disagreement, suggesting that Wande had attempted to establish direct contact before the exchange played out publicly.
Davido and Wande Coal have exchanged words on X over the unreleased collaboration “Come My Way”, revisiting a snippet that has circulated online and sparked interest among fans.
Responding to a post about why the collaboration never materialised as an official release, Davido explained that Wande Coal had initially reached out to him for the song. According to Davido, he recorded his verse after being approached, but disagreed with the proposed release plan.
“He hit me up to do the song. so I recorded that verse,” Davido wrote. “I think he wanted to drop it first then drop my own as a remix & I was like no oh, I didn’t record it as a remix. It would have been nice sha.”
Wande Coal responded to Davido’s explanation, disputing the idea that Davido should have had a say in how the song was released.
“Song wey no be your own you wan dictate release plan. That song f#kin did well without you on it bruv!!!” Wande Coal wrote.
The exchange then became more personal, with Davido replying, “No vex Mr Little 🍆.”
Wande Coal responded: “No vex too Mr. Toto beggar 😂.”
The back-and-forth has brought renewed attention to “Come My Way”, a song whose snippet has circulated online without an official release featuring both artists. The exchange also offers some context on why the collaboration between two established Nigerian artists did not move forward.
