Dapper Live Sets World Record For Largest Orchestra At Afrobeats Concert

Dapper Live, the live events division of Dapper Group, one of Africa’s leading entertainment conglomerates, set a new Guinness World Record for the largest orchestra for an Afrobeats concert.

The record was set during Trench Symphony: The Dapper Live Experience, a orchestral Afrobeats concert held on Dec. 16, 2025, at the Balmoral Eko Convention Centre, Federal Palace Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos, Nigeria.

The event featured over 80 orchestra members performing live alongside some of the most exciting names in Afrobeats.

The confirmation from the Guinness World Records team marks a landmark moment not only for Dapper Live but for the entire Afrobeats genre, establishing a new global benchmark for orchestral performances within African popular music.

Dubbed “Trenches Opera,” the Trench Symphony concert was a bold creative vision conceived, and executive produced by Damilola “Dapper” Akinwunmi, Group Chief Executive Officer of Dapper Group.

The concert featured performances from Dapper Group artists T.I Blaze, TML Vibez, Bhadboi OML, Rybeena, Lasmid, Cazulee, Kashcoming, and DWillsHarmony, with special guest appearances by Nigerian music legends Saheed Osupa and KS1 Malaika. Each artist performed their catalogue reimagined with full orchestral arrangements.

In November 2025, American rapper Jeezy set the Guinness World Record for the largest orchestra in a hip hop music concert, performing with 101 members of the Color of Noize Orchestra during his TM:101 Live residency at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino in Las Vegas.

Damilola “Dapper” Akinwunmi, Group Chief Executive Officer of Dapper Group, commented, “Trench Symphony was born from a simple but powerful belief: that African music, in its truest and most authentic form, belongs on the world’s biggest stages. We didn’t just want to set a record; we wanted to create something iconic. Something that shows the world what Africa is capable of when vision meets excellence. The globalisation of African music is not coming, it is here. And with Trench Symphony, we took it further than it has ever been taken before. From Lagos to the world, this is what happens when you refuse to put a ceiling on African artistry.”

Following the Guinness World Record, Dapper Live has announced that Trench Symphony will go on tour in 2026, spanning 10 Nigerian states, bringing the record-breaking orchestral Afrobeats experience to audiences across the country, before heading to international stages in London, Birmingham, and Dublin (UK & Ireland), Paris (France), and Canada, with tour dates, venues, and ticketing details TBA.

Dapper Group is a Nigerian entertainment conglomerate and one of Africa’s leading music companies, commanding, by its own admission, nearly 8% market share. Founded in 2019, the company operates five subsidiaries: Dapper Music & Entertainment (record label), Dvpper Digital (distribution), S94 Publishing (publishing), Bangers Only Productions (production), and Dapper Live (live events).

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