Wilson Abubakar Radido popularly known by his stage name Willy Paul is a prolific and award winning singer, songwriter and performer in Kenya. His genre of music is Afro-pop. He sings most of his songs in his local dialect mixed with English. He has done really well for himself that he even has his own record label named Salido International Entertainment
Willy Paul was born in the slums of Mathare in the early 90s. Willy Paul didn’t let his being born poor by a carpenter Father and an Immigrant Mother living in the slums affect his going ahead for his dreams. Willy Paul who dropped out of school due to financial constraint was able to read music on his own and learn to play various music instruments. Performing at small shows in the slum he was able to find his way to the top ladder in the Kenyan music industry. Willy Paul is currently married to singer “Alaine”, a union which happened due to one of their collaborations.
Willy Paul got his first breakthrough in the Kenyan music industry after the release of his song titled “Sitiola” which saw him team up it Muliro. Even with the controversies that surrounded the song, the song got a lot of views in the media and was featured on charts which let to some of the major promoters and Kenyan socialite seeking after the artiste. Other songs like “Rabuka” also helped his growth in the Kenyan music scene.
Willy Paul has been able to churn out major releases like I do which saw him team up with Alaine, Niwa which saw him team up with Tanzanian songstress Nandy, Halleluyah which also saw him team up with Nandy, Sikireti which saw him employ the lyrical prowess of Cecil, Nobody saw him team up with Nigerian singer Yemi Alade just to mention a few. His studio albums have also done very well in the Kenyan musical market.
Willy Paul has won himself various award recognition including the award for “video of the year”, “male artist of the year” and other notable award nominations. The artiste has also gotten himself various endorsements from top brands in Kenya. Willy Paul has also had the opportunity to perform with some top artiste in Kenya and all across Africa.
Willy Paul’s Net worth is estimated at 107 million Us dollars. This is calculating the money made from sales of albums, show/gig payments, music video views on youtube, various endorsement deals and calculated properties/ investments. Willy Paul has been able to do well for himself in the Kenyan music scene and is one of the most influential artiste in Kenya. Here are the best songs by Willy Paul.
1. CHUCHUMA
2. HALLELUYAH FEATURING NANDY
3. I DO FEATURING ALAINE
4. JIGI JIGI
5. SHADO MADO FEATURING ALAINE
6. NJIWA FEATURING NANDY
7. MMMH FEATURING RAYVANNY
8. MALINGO
9. TAM TAM (REMIX) FEATURING SIZE 8
10. KITANZI
Willy Paul is one artiste that has been able to pull through obstacles to make a name for himself in the Kenyan musical scene. He has also managed to release songs which will seem to be forever evergreen.
What do you make of our list? Share thoughts in the comment section below.
