Nigerian singer Darlington Okoye, popularly known as Speed Darlington, has renewed his appeal to Grammy-winning artiste Damini Ogulu, aka Burna Boy, to withdraw the charges against him, offering an apology and promising to end his public comments about the singer.
Speed Darlington made the appeal in a video shared on his Instagram page on Thursday, expressing regret over any pain or embarrassment his remarks might have caused Burna Boy.
“This video is for Burna Boy. Burna, this is an apology video. I apologise for any pain that I have caused you. Any shame that I have caused you,” he said.
The singer admitted that he had wrongly assumed that others shared his temperament and approach to public exchanges, adding that he wanted the disagreement to end.
He also promised to stop making both direct and indirect comments about Burna Boy’s sexuality, provided the singer withdrew the charges and allowed the matter to rest.
“I give you my word that if you withdraw all charges and let everything die, I give you my word that I will never make any direct comment regarding your sexuality,” he said.
Speed Darlington further pledged not to mention Burna Boy’s name again if the dispute was resolved.
The latest appeal follows a feud that escalated in October 2024 after Speed Darlington released videos questioning Burna Boy’s Grammy Award win for his album, Twice as Tall, and making insinuations about his relationship with American music executive Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs.
Burna Boy subsequently petitioned the police over alleged defamation and cyberstalking, leading to Speed Darlington’s arrest in Lagos on October 4, 2024. He was later transferred to Abuja and released on October 9.
The dispute resurfaced in November 2024 when Speed Darlington was arrested again while performing at a show in Owerri, Imo State.
His lawyer, Deji Adeyanju, criticised the arrest and accused Burna Boy of using the police to oppress his client.
Speed Darlington was subsequently arraigned and granted bail in January 2025 after spending several weeks in detention.
Earlier, his lawyer, Stan Alieke, had issued an apology to Burna Boy, explaining that the controversial videos were intended for entertainment and not to defame the singer.
However, Speed Darlington later distanced himself from that apology, claiming his lawyer had advised him to make it to secure the release of his seized phone.
Despite his release, the disagreement continued, with the singer releasing diss material and making further public remarks about Burna Boy.
His latest video appears to signal another attempt to resolve the dispute, although his promise to refrain from further comments remains conditional on Burna Boy withdrawing the charges.
