From A Producer To A Global Superstar-Chapter 399: Shina’s Trouble

The room was quiet except for the low hum of the laptop.

Shina sat in front of the screen, shoulders slightly hunched, eyes fixed on the timeline stretched across the editing software. Clips filled the track. Cuts, transitions, color grading already applied in places. He had been at it for hours.

And still... something wasn’t right.

He played the sequence again.

Davido stepped into frame.

The lighting was clean.

The movement was smooth.

The transitions were correct.

Everything was... correct.

Shina leaned back slightly and exhaled.

"Why e no dey enter like this..."

He dragged the playhead back and watched it again.

Same thing.

Nothing wrong.

But it was not hitting that spot he had watched a lot of videos so he knew something was missing but he couldn’t point what exactly was missing.

He rubbed his face with both hands and looked at the numbers on his phone again.

₦10,000,000.

He had checked it more times than he wanted to admit.

Ten million naira.

For shooting a music video.

For directing.

For him.

He let out a short laugh, but there was no humor in it.

"Ten million... and this is what I wan deliver?"

He leaned forward again, eyes narrowing at the screen.

"I no fit do nonsense."

He clicked through different clips, rearranging them slightly, adjusting timing, shifting a transition forward by a fraction.

He played it again.

Still the same feeling.

Flat it had a feeling of not bad and that was all for a huge star like Dayo and Davido this quality wouldn’t stand.

His fingers hovered over the keyboard for a second before he picked up his phone.

He didn’t overthink it.

He knew what to so he dialed Dayo’s phone.

The line rang once.

Twice.

Then connected.

"Yeah."

"Bro..."

There was a pause.

"I don edit am tire." Shina said. "But I no dey convinced."

Dayo didn’t reply immediately.

"Where you dey?"

"House."

"Come."

That was all.

"Alright."

He knew he didn’t have to act courtesy with Dayo after spending time with Dayo he understood how how he was he loved when you asked question so he stood up and packed up and order his ride to his house.

****

The internet was not quiet.

That was the thing.

While Shina sat there struggling with a timeline, the outside world had already moved into another level of noise.

The teaser had done its job.

Now people wanted more.

Posts were everywhere.

"Where the song?"

"Why dem never drop am?"

"This delay no make sense."

"I don replay that snippet tire."

"Abeg make them drop this song nah."

Somebody posted:

"If this thing no drop this week, we go riot."

Another replied:

"Na hype dem dey build."

"Aje we no go gree o ah We don dey hype D Square for more than two weeks now abeg nah."

"Yes o please release the song already."

Others weren’t convinced.

"Hope say nothing don spoil."

"Why everywhere quiet suddenly?"

"Like I smell something is going on."

"Hmm oga what are you smellinh abeg shift thats how you all will start nonsense abeg nothing is happening."

"Abeg make nothing happen o."

Blogs were picking it up again.

"Dayo and Davido collaboration yet to drop as anticipation builds."

"Fans begin questioning delay in highly anticipated track."

"D Square yet to announce any date hype or problem."

Some fans were now angry at the blogs causing issues:

"Abeg all these blog should rest nah which one is all this one that they are trying to start."

"Omo e tire me o just because they no talk."

"Leave those blogs most of them didn’t go to school hehe."

"But come to think of it there’s no smoke without fire just saying no fight me."

"True Sha u no lie I just hope nothing happen."

"Don’t worry everyone e go drop."

It wasn’t panic.

But it was building.

Expectation turning into pressure.

And pressure... always needed an outlet.

By the time Shina got to Dayo’s place, his head was already full.

He knocked once and stepped in after the door opened.

Dayo was already inside, seated near the table with his laptop open.

Sharon was there too, sitting on the couch with her phone in hand.

She glanced up.

"You look stressed."

Shina dropped his bag on the table.

"I am."

Dayo didn’t look up immediately.

"Bring it."

Shina pulled out his laptop and turned it toward him.

"I don do everything I know," he said. "Cuts clean, transitions correct, everything... but something no dey."

Dayo finally shifted his attention to the screen.

"Play it."

Shina hit play.

The video ran.

Nobody spoke.

Sharon lowered her phone slightly, watching as well.

The clip ended.

There was a short silence.

Dayo tapped the table lightly once.

"Again."

Shina replayed it.

This time, Dayo leaned forward slightly, his eyes more focused.

The clip ended again.

He sat back.

"It’s not bad."

Shina nodded quickly.

"I know. But it’s not enough."

Dayo looked at him.

"You feel am."

Shina let out a breath.

"I no fit explain am, but I feel am."

Dayo nodded once He knew his choice wa right if this video was given to someone without talent the person might pass it as a good video but indeed somethings were missing.

"Good."

He reached for the laptop and pulled it closer.

"Watch."

He didn’t explain first.

He just started working.

He dragged a clip forward.

Cut a section out.

Moved another one slightly earlier.

"Your timing is too safe," he said calmly. "You’re following the beat too directly."

Shina frowned.

"Isn’t that correct?"

"It’s predictable."

He adjusted another section.

"Sometimes you need to come before the beat. Sometimes after."

He replayed a small part.

The difference was immediate.

It felt sharper.

More alive.

Shina leaned forward.

"Wait..."

Dayo didn’t stop.

He kept moving.

"Also, you’re showing too much."

He cut out a portion of a scene entirely.

"Let people imagine small."

He added a quick transition.

Subtle.

But effective.

Then he adjusted the color slightly.

Not drastically.

Just enough.

He replayed the sequence again.

The same footage.

But now...

It felt different.

The energy was there.

The flow made sense.

It pulled attention instead of just presenting.

Shina blinked he couldn’t belive what he was witnessing just a small change had such a huge effect to the video.

"Bro..."

Dayo didn’t react.

"Continue watching."

He made one more small adjustment.

Then leaned back.

"Play it from the top."

Shina did.

The full sequence ran.

This time, he didn’t lean back.

He stayed forward.

Watching everything.

When it ended, he just sat there for a second.

"Bro..."

He looked at Dayo.

"This is mad." That was all he could say.

Dayo shrugged slightly.

"You’ll get there."

Shina shook his head.

"No. This one is different."

Dayo leaned back.

"You were editing what you saw. You need to edit what people should feel."

That hit.

Shina nodded slowly.

"Feel..."

"Yeah," Dayo continued. "Anybody can arrange clips. Not everybody can control reaction."

Shina exhaled.

"Guy... this thing..."

Dayo cut him off.

"You’ll learn it."

Shina smiled slightly.

"Still... you’re fucking good."

Dayo didn’t respond to that.

He just tapped the table lightly.

"Fix the rest."

Shina nodded immediately.

"Say less."

He understood immediately and started working on it

***

Across the city, Davido sat in a different kind of quiet.

The room was calm, but not relaxed.

His manager sat across from him, flipping through something on his tablet.

"So," the manager said, looking up. "How’s the video?"

Davido leaned back in his chair.

"It went well."

"You’ve seen any cuts?"

"Not yet. They’re still working on it."

The manager nodded.

"Good. We need it clean."

Davido picked up a bottle and took a sip.

"We’ll start countdown once it’s ready," he added. "Give people something to hold."

The manager leaned forward slightly.

"How many days?"

"Three. Maybe four."

"That’s tight."

"It’s enough."

The manager studied him for a second.

"And the release?"

Davido didn’t hesitate.

"As planned."

There was a pause.

Then the manager asked the real question.

"How do you feel about everything?"

Davido looked at him.

"What do you mean?"

"You know what I mean."

There was a short silence.

Davido leaned back slightly.

"I’m fine."

The manager didn’t respond immediately.

He just watched him.

"You’re sure?"

Davido nodded once.

"It already happened."

That was his answer.

Simple.

Direct.

But not complete.

The manager leaned back as well.

"Alright."

He didn’t push further.

No need.

Some things, you let them just be after all he knew how Davido was feeling.

***

Back in the room, Shina was still staring at the screen.

He replayed the edited version again.

And again.

Each time, he noticed something new.

Something he missed before.

"Bro... I see am now."

Dayo glanced at him briefly.

"What?"

"The difference."

Dayo nodded.

"Good."

Shina leaned back slightly.

"I thought I knew what I was doing."

"You do," Dayo said. "Just not everything."

Shina smiled.

"Fair."

Sharon stood up from the couch and walked closer, glancing at the screen.

"Let me see."

Shina played the updated version.

She watched quietly.

Then nodded.

"This one is better."

Shina looked at her.

"Better?"

She shrugged slightly.

"It pulls attention. The other one was just... there."

He laughed.

"That’s exactly how I felt."

Dayo closed the laptop slightly.

"Finish it."

Shina nodded.

"I will."

Outside, the noise hadn’t stopped.

If anything, it was getting louder.

People were waiting.

Refreshing.

Asking questions.

Speculating.

No one knew what was happening behind the scenes.

But everyone could feel something was coming.

And when anticipation reached that level...

There was no quiet way to release it.

Something would give.

Soon.

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