Ayoleyi Hanniel Solomon (born 6 December 1993),[1] better known by hisstage name Reekado Banks, is a Nigerianrecording artist, singer and songwriter. He is currently signed to Mavin Records.[2] He went by the stage name Spicy prior to his record deal with the aforementioned label. He was declared the Rookie of the Year atThe Headies 2014,[3] and won the controversial Next Rated award at The Headies 2015.

Reekado Banks is the last child of a music-loving family. His father is a pastor and his mother is a caterer. Moreover, his elder brother is a producer and his elder sister is a gospel singer. He grew up in a disciplinarian setting due to both of his parents being pastors. He completed his secondary school at the age of 14, and started recording his first set of songs in 2008. His elder brother produced all of his earlier songs and tutored him on the rudiments of singing, writing and producing. He derived the stage name Reekado Banks by combining the meanings of the two names; the former part of his stage name translates to “strong ruler”, while the latter part loosely translates to “wealth”.[4] In 2014, Reekado Banks graduated from theUniversity of Lagos with a degree in History and Strategic Study.[3] He has cited Don Jazzy, 2face Idibia, DJ Jimmy Jatt, Olamideand M.I as his key musical inspirations.[5]

His record deal with Mavin Records came as a result of his brother submitting some of his songs to the label in an online talent search. Reekado Banks got signed to Mavin Records after his entries were selected from over 5000 entries.[6] Reekado Banks told The National Mirror that his brother submitted his songs and communicated with the label on his behalf without his initial consent. Reekado Banks also told TheNational Mirror that he’s a versatile artist who makes music with the thought that humans are different and have different taste.[4]

Reekado Banks premiered the single “Turn It Up” on 21 February 2014, which happens to be the same day he got signed to Mavin Records; the song features Tiwa Savageand was released as his first official single under Mavin Records.[7] Reekado Banks was featured alongside label mates Don Jazzy, Korede Bello, Tiwa Savage, Di’Ja, Dr SID and D’Prince on the critical acclaim song “Dorobucci“, which was released on 1 May 2014.[8] Reekado Banks has also worked with his label mates to release the collaborative singles “Adaobi”, “Arise” and “Looku Looku”. On 13 February 2015, Reekado Banks released the Don Jazzy produced song “Katapot”. The song was alleged to be a diss track towards D’banjand Wande Coal. In February 2015, Don Jazzy debunked the allegations in a series of tweets.[9] While speaking to Vanguardnewspaper, Reekado Banks stated that he created “Katapot” for his fans.[10]

In July 2015, Nigerian telecommunications company Globacom signed Reekado Banks to an endorsement deal.[11]