FOLA 9 album: tracklist, features and what to expect from Friday’s release

The FOLA 9 album arrives on Friday, 9 October. On 7 October the singer revealed its 14 songs, with guest spots from Davido, Ayra Starr, BNXN, Darkoo, Bella Shmurda and Zlatan. It is his second album and his first since Catharsis in 2025, and it lands two weeks before he goes into the Headies as the most-nominated artist of the year. Here is what is confirmed, what the title means and what to listen for.

By Editorial Team

What we know

• Release date (FACT). FOLA’s second album, 9, comes out on Friday, 9 October 2026, through Dangbana Republik and EMPIRE, NotJustOk and BellaNaija report. The album is already listed on Apple Music.
• 14 tracks (FACT). FOLA posted the full tracklist on 7 October. It opens with “awade” and “how many?” and ends with “it’s over”.
• Six guests (FACT). Davido is on “2am in toronto”, Ayra Starr on “treat u right”, BNXN on “my type” and Darkoo on “hold u down”. Bella Shmurda and Zlatan share the closing track, “it’s over”.
• A 2Baba sample (REPORTED). NotJustOk reports that the song “crime” samples a classic by 2Baba. It did not name the original song, and neither have we.
• In his own words (FACT). In his post, FOLA wrote that he made the album “with some of my favourite producers, musicians and artists” and that “every song came from somewhere real”.

What the FOLA 9 album title means

The title is a football reference. In football, the number 9 shirt traditionally goes to the striker, the player whose job is to score. FOLA has called himself “the striker” before, and BellaNaija describes the title as a nod to the artist you call on when a song needs to land.

It also fits the date. The album comes out on the ninth day of the month, which makes the title easy to remember and easy to promote.

Old songs and new collaborations

The FOLA 9 album is not made up entirely of new music. BellaNaija notes that several songs fans already know are on the tracklist, including “treat u right” with Ayra Starr, “Attention!” and the fan favourite “Fine Ting (Fine $hit)”. FOLA also released “Miss U II (Nriri)” shortly before the tracklist went up.

This is a common approach for Nigerian albums in the streaming era. Putting singles that already have listeners next to fresh songs gives the album a strong first week, while the new tracks give fans a reason to press play on the whole project.

The new collaborations are the main attraction. “2am in toronto” is his second big song with Davido, after “B4 B4”, which also features Mayorkun. “B4 B4” became a major hit for both artists, and its music video was shot at the Lagos studio complex Femi Adebayo has just opened, as we reported in our story on the Euphoria360 Hub.

The Ayra Starr duet adds another star name. She has had a busy autumn, including the release of her video with Zayn, which we covered in Ayra Starr and Zayn’s “Heaven Baby” video. BNXN, Darkoo, Bella Shmurda and Zlatan give the album a mix of R&B, UK-Nigerian crossover and street-pop voices.

Why the timing matters

FOLA goes into the album as one of the most talked-about young artists in Nigeria. When the nominations for the 18th Headies were announced on 25 August, he led the list with 10 nominations, ahead of Omah Lay with eight, Channels Television and The Nollywood Reporter reported.

The ceremony is in Toronto on 23 October, according to the official Headies website. Some reports in August gave a different date, but the organisers’ site now lists 23 October. Our guide to the Headies explains how the categories and voting work.

Two points are worth making clear. The new album cannot affect this year’s Headies, because only music released between 1 August 2024 and 30 April 2026 was eligible. And it is the 2025 album Catharsis and FOLA’s singles from that period that earned the nominations, not 9.

The release date also puts FOLA one week ahead of a busy day for Nigerian music. A run of major albums is due on 16 October, as we explained in our preview of the 16 October releases. Arriving a week earlier gives FOLA’s album some room before that wave.

What to listen for

• The Davido song. “2am in toronto” is likely to be the most-streamed new song in the first days. NotJustOk reported that it would arrive on Friday alongside the album.
• The closing track. Ending with Bella Shmurda and Zlatan suggests a high-energy finish rather than a slow fade.
• The 2Baba sample. Fans will be listening for which classic “crime” borrows from.
• How it charts. The first full chart week for the album will run from Friday 9 to Thursday 15 October. TurnTable usually publishes the Official Nigeria Top 100 a few days after the tracking week ends. Our TurnTable Charts guide explains how streams and radio count, and you can see the current No. 1 in our story on Seyi Vibez’s Ilome.

What we do not know yet

FOLA’s announcement did not name producers for individual songs. There is no confirmed list of songwriting credits yet, and no announcement of a tour or launch show for the album. We have not seen any first-day streaming figures, because the album is not out yet. We will not guess at chart positions before the data arrives.

What happens next

• 9 October: the FOLA 9 album and “2am in toronto” are released.
• Mid-October: the first streaming and chart data. Spotify and Apple Music daily charts in Nigeria will give an early signal, and TurnTable’s weekly chart will give the official picture.
• 23 October: the 18th Headies in Toronto, where FOLA leads the nominations.
• We will follow up with a track-by-track look once the album is out, and with the chart results.

More from the scene: Afrobeats.

Photo credits: Featured image: Davido, who features on “2am in toronto”, in 2024. Photo: OLAMIPOSI DANIEL, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0). Source. In-article image: Ayra Starr, who duets with FOLA on “treat u right”, at Ultima Studios, Lagos, 2024. Photo: Ultima Studios Nigeria, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 3.0). Source.

Sources

• NotJustOk: Full tracklist and artists featured on FOLA’s new album, ‘9’ revealed (7 Oct 2026)
• BellaNaija: FOLA unveils ‘9’ tracklist featuring Davido, Ayra Starr, BNXN, Darkoo and more (7 Oct 2026)
• Apple Music: 9 by FOLA (album listing)
• Channels Television: Fola, Omah Lay, Ayra Starr lead 2026 Headies nominations (25 Aug 2026)
• The Nollywood Reporter: Fola leads 18th Headies Awards nominees
• The Headies: official website (event date and venue)