As the 66th Grammy Awards draw near, organizers have revealed a list of African musicians who have earned the prestigious award since the 1960s.
However, the absence of top superstars Wizkid and Tems from the list has raised eyebrows among fans anticipating their recognition on the global music stage.
The list of African Grammy winners commenced with Miriam Makeba, a South African singer, recognized as the pioneer African recipient of a Grammy award in the Best Folk Recording category in 1966. Sade Adu, the renowned pop sensation with Nigerian and UK roots, achieved Best New Artist in 1986.
Burna Boy, the most recent Nigerian artist, secured the Best Global Music Album award in 2021.
Despite the celebration of these achievements, controversy has sparked on social media as Wizkid and Tems were omitted from the Grammy winners list.
In March 2021, Wizkid won his first Grammy for contributing to ‘Brown Skin Girl,’ a 2019 song by Beyoncé, in the Best Music Video category.
Tems secured her debut Grammy in 2023 for Best Melodic Rap Performance in ‘Wait for U,’ a hit song by Future featuring Drake.
Unfortunately, Wizkid or Tems won’t have any chance to claim a Grammy this year.
The 2024 ‘Best African Music Performance’ category for the 66th Grammy Awards includes only nominations for Amapiano by ASAKE & Olamide, City Boys by Burna Boy, UNAVAILABLE by Davido Featuring Musa Keys, Rush by Ayra Starr, and Water by Tyla made the list.
10 Grammy Award Africa Winners
Miriam Makeba (South Africa) — Best Folk Recording (with Harry Belafonte) – 1966
Sade Adu (Nigeria/UK) — Best New Artist – 1986
Ali Farka Touré (Mali) — Best World Music Album – 1994
Cesária Évora (Cape Verde) — Best Contemporary World Music Album – 2004
Youssou N’Dour (Senegal) — Best Contemporary World Music Album – 2005
Angélique Kidjo (Benin/France) — Best Contemporary World Music Album – 2008
RedOne (Morocco) — Best Dance/Electronic Album – 2010
Tinariwen (Mali/Algeria/Libya) — Best World Music Album – 2012
Burna Boy (Nigeria) — Best Global Music Album – 2021
Black Coffee (South Africa) – Best Dance/ Electronic Album — 2022
