Nigerian Afrobeats icons including Burna Boy, Davido, Tems, Ayra Starr, Olamide, and Asake faced disappointment at the 66th Grammy Awards, as none of them secured a win from their 10 nominations across five categories.
The ‘Best African Music Performance’ trophy, a category featuring six Nigerian Afrobeats stars, was clinched by South African singer Tyla for her 2023 track, “Water.”
All the categories in which the Nigerian artists were nominated were announced at the Grammy Premiere ceremony, where numerous awards are presented before the main live telecast show.
In the ‘Best Global Album’ category, 2021 winner Burna Boy and Davido lost to Shakti, a world fusion band, with their album “This Moment,” surpassing Burna Boy’s “I Told Them,” Davido’s “Timeless,” and others.
The corresponding ‘Best Global Music Performance’ category also proved elusive for Burna Boy and Davido, as Indian composer Zakir Hussain won for the track “Pashto” featuring Bela Fleck and Edger Meyer.
Lil Durk’s collaboration with J Cole on “All My Life” dashed Burna Boy’s hopes in the Best Melodic Rap category, claiming the Grammy for Best Melodic Rap over Burna Boy’s four nominations.
Despite being set to perform the nominated track “Sittin’ on Top of The World” with American rapper 21 Savage at the live telecast ceremony, Burna Boy was unable to secure a win.
Tems, who won her first Grammy last year, lost in the Song Written for Visual Media category.
Her contribution to the Black Panther theme song ‘Lift me Up’ performed by Rihanna was defeated by ‘What Was I Made For’ performed by Billie Eilish for the 2023 fantasy drama ‘Barbie.’
