Burna Boy, WizKid, Tems — more and more, the GRAMMY-winning stars of Afrobeats are becoming household names. 

Based in Nigeria, the genre has exploded in popularity internationally. Billboard recently started a chart for Afrobeats singles, and the Recording Academy recently added a brand new category, Best African Music Performance, to honor the continent’s best musicians. 

The pan-African pop movement has generated lots of fresh and interesting talent in recent years. Red on for 10 Afrobeats artists who are bringing their unique voices and perspectives to the scene.

AMAARAE

Born in the Bronx, Ghanaian American AMAARAE was raised between Atlanta and Accra — and it shows in her unapologetically sexy music. Bridging the gap between African and American sounds is AMAARAE's M.O.; she’s collaborated with artists on both continents, from Blaqbonez and Stonebwoy to Kaytraminé and Kali Uchis. 

On songs like "Wasted Eyes" off her latest album Fountain Baby, AMAARAE effortlessly blends Afrobeats with R&B and neo-soul, alongside raps that reverberate with trap braggadocio: "Fresh to death, I’m beyond heat / Activist in my Dior jeans." 

Speaking of designer clothes, she’s also becoming something of a fashion icon, having been profiled in British Vogue about her style and teaming with Shygirl and Arca on a campaign for H&M’s collab line with Mugler.

AMAKA

All over the world, forward thinking musicians are introducing new innovations to pop music. Take NewJeans, for instance — the K-pop quintet introduced global club influences and Western collabs into their music, resulting in rave reviews and massive hits. 

Nigerian American R&B singer AMAKA, formerly of the sister act VanJess, also wanted to do something different for her solo debut, recruiting Haitian Canadian producer/DJ KAYTRANADA, whose woozy take on house music has earned him two GRAMMY Awards. The resulting EP, Oasis, is incredibly interesting, blending suave R&B with Afrobeats influences for an irresistible, sensual combination that feels like an exciting new direction for African pop music. 

Asake

You don’t have to look far to find the next major Afrobeats superstar, the next Burna Boy or Wizkid — it’s Asake. This month he sold out London’s O2 Arena. Before that he took Miami’s inaugural AfroNation festival by storm with a showstopping set that saw the audience tearing off his clothes. And even before that he had booked appearances on "The Tonight Show" and "Good Morning America." 

He is incredibly talented and charismatic, as his rapid rise proves. But what makes the deep-voiced Lagotian so compelling isn’t just that — it’s also the embrace of a musical pan-Africanism that feels special. He blows open the Afrobeats formula by introducing influences from all over the continent. "Dull" from his debut Mr. Money With the Vibes interpolates the traditional Yoruba genre of fújì, but he also includes séga, a traditional genre from Mauritius and Réunion, on "Yoga," from this year’s Work of Art.  Of course, there’s also his primary influence, South Africa’s massive house offshoot amapiano — he even named a song, which became a massive hit, after the genre

Aya Nakamura

Most big Afrobeats and amapiano stars tend to perform mainly in English, with many also mixing in African languages like Yoruba, Igbo, and Zulu. But with a massive portion of the continent speaking French, it makes sense that a few Francophone Afrobeats musicians have risen up.

Born in Mali and raised outside of Paris, Aya Nakamura comes from a family of griots (musical oral historians), meaning music runs in the family. She’s had a string of massive hits in France and elsewhere in Europe, including 2018’s massive "Djadja," a bold breakup anthem which topped the charts in France and the Netherlands. 

This year, she’s returned with a new album, DNK, and rather than take on the trendy amapiano influences embraced by the rest of the Afrobeats world, she’s offering her own take on zouk, a French-Caribbean dance genre. In our borderless era of pop music, this is one talent that certainly deserves more attention in the states. 

BNXN

Formerly known as Buju, BNXN (a stylization of his last name Benson) can count Burna Boy as a mentor, having quarantined with the King of Afrobeats during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Like his mentor, BNXN describes his sound as Afro-fusion, taking cues from R&B, dancehall, and traditional genres from Nigeria. 

It’s this Naija identity that truly powers his distinctive songwriting voice, however. A song by BNXN will feature plenty of local witticisms and lyrics in pidgin and local languages, as well as standard English, and his faculty as a storyteller ranges from tales from the gritty streets to childhood recollections of Lagos. 

Fireboy DML

Afrobeats is full of romantics, from Burna Boy to "Africa’s number one boyfriend" Ckay. With his own "Afro-life" take on songwriting, Fireboy DML certainly occupies that lane well, taking on a Casanova persona and weaving tales of love and heartbreak that frequently see him top the charts. 

His track "Peru" resulted in remixes from Ed Sheeran and 21 Savage, topping the Billboard U.S. Afrobeats Songs chart last year and making it to 53 on the Hot 100 and all the way to number two on the Global 200. Fireboy DML’s reappeared this year with the uptempo, dancefloor-ready "Someone" and amapiano-influenced "YAWA," both taking his sound in interesting new directions.  

Mr Eazi

Though he’s been a star in Nigeria and Ghana for some time, it’s taken Mr Eazi until now to announce a debut album, currently due in October. Lead single "Chop Time, No Friend," with a title taken from a pidgin phrase meaning "live in the moment," is a breezy, catchy take on Afrobeats with a vibrant video paying tribute to local life in Dakar, Senegal. 

It’s only one part of the artist’s ambitions. He’s also joined BBC Radio 1Xtra selector DJ Edu to create the ChopLife Soundsystem, a new project designed to highlight sounds from across the continent. Their first release Chop Life, Vol. 1: Mzansi Chronicles delves into amapiano, featuring stars of the genre such as Focalistic and Major League DJz. 

Lisa Yaro

An actress, singer, and songwriter, Lisa Yaro is a triple threat. She’s acted alongside Vanessa Hudgens in movies like Asking For It, and written for the likes of will.i.am. Now she’s turning her attention to music with her debut EP My Way. It’s a pivot that may prove her most exciting move yet: Single "SAVAGE" bristles with amapiano-influenced brawn, while the title track offers a confident take on the Afrobeats sound. With the scene remaining dominated by male artists, it’s exciting to see a female singer arrive with such a clearly-defined sound.

Oladapo

With a style incorporating highlife, R&B, and pop with lyrics in English, Yoruba, and Nigerian pidgin, Oladapo is another up-and-coming musician in the Afro-fusion lane. He got an early boost when his 2019 single "Mango" was shortlisted by Mr Eazi’s Empawa Africa initiative, and since then he’s refined his style on bright and romantic hits like "Proud." 

His latest single, "IF AT ALL," adds amapiano log drums and blends a wistful instrumental with contemplative lyrics. 

Ruger

In pop music it sometimes helps to have a signature look. There’s Missy Elliot’s bulbous "Supa Dupa Fly" fit, or KISS’ black-and-white face paint. Pharrell had his vintage Vivienne Westwood hat, and Dame Viv herself helped defined the punk aesthetic by styling the Sex Pistols. Nigerian singer Ruger has…an eyepatch. 

To be clear, he’s not visually impaired in any way, he just wears it because it’s hard. Specifically, as he once told an interviewer, it’s a tie-in with his artist name — taken from the Ruger firearms company — and his persona as a sniper, as well as a tribute to a friend in the Nigerian military who really did lose an eye. Of course it’s not all about the eyepatch, because Ruger’s bubbly blend of dancehall and Afrobeats on songs like "Bounce" is a winning pop formula. 

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If you were online during the summer of 2022, chances are you’ve heard Pheelz’s viral hit single "Finesse." The swanky Afro-fusion track (featuring fellow Nigerian artist Bnxn) ushered in a world of crossover success for Pheelz, who began his career as a producer for the likes of Omah Lay, Davido, and Fireboy DML.

Born Phillip Kayode Moses, Pheelz’s religious upbringing in Lagos state contributed to his development as a musician. He manned the choir at his father’s church while actively working on his solo music. Those solo efforts garnered praise from his peers and music executives, culminating in Pheelz's debut EP in 2021. Hear Me Out saw Pheelz fully embrace his talent as a vocalist, songwriter, and producer. 

"I feel important, like I’m just molding clay, and I have control over each decision," Pheelz tells GRAMMY.com about creating his own music. 

2022 saw the release of the first two tapes in his Pheelz Good trilogy: Pheelz Good I and Pheelz Good (Triibe Tape), which was almost entirely self-produced. The 29-year-old's consistency has paid off: he produced and sang on Usher’s "Ruin," the lead single from his latest album Coming Home, and also produced the album's title track featuring Burna Boy. But Pheelz isn't only about racking up big-name collaborators; the self-proclaimed African rockstar's forthcoming projects will center on profound vulnerability and interpersonal honesty. First up: Pheelz Good II EP, out May 10, followed by a studio album in late summer.

Both releases will see the multi-hyphenate "being unapologetically myself," Pheelz tells GRAMMY.com. "It will also be me being as vulnerable as I can be. And it’s going to be me embracing my "crayge" [crazy rage]...being myself, and allowing my people to gravitate towards me."

Ahead of his new project, Pheelz spoke with GRAMMY.com about his transition from producer artist, designing all his own 3D cover art, his rockstar aesthetic, and what listeners can expect from Pheelz Good II.

This interview has been edited for clarity.

What sparked your transition from singing in church to realizing your passion for creating music?

For me, it wasn’t really a transition. I just always loved making music so for me I felt like it was just wherever I go to make music, that’s where I wanna be. I would be in church and I was the choirmaster at some point in my life, so I would write songs for Sunday service as well. And then I would go to school as well and write in school, and people heard me and they would love it. And I would want to do more of that as well. 

A friend of my dad played some of my records for the biggest producers in Nigeria back then and took me on as an intern in his studio. I guess that’s the transition from church music into the industry. My brothers and sisters were in the choir, but that came with the job of being the children of the pastor, I guess. None of them really did music like me; I’m the only one who took music as a career and pursued it.

You made a name for yourself as a producer before ever releasing your music, earning Producer Of The Year at Nigeria’s Headies Awards numerous times. What finally pushed you to get into the booth?

I’ve always wanted to get into the booth. The reason why I actually started producing was to produce beats for songs that I had written. I’ve always been in the booth, but always had something holding me back. Like a kind of subconscious feeling over what my childhood has been. I wasn’t really outspoken as a child growing up, so I wouldn’t want people to really hear me and would shy away from the camera in a sense. I think that stuck with me and held me back. 

But then COVID happened and then I caught COVID and I’m like Oh my god and like that [snaps fingers] What I am doing? Why am I not going full steam? Like why do I have all this amazing awesomeness inside of me and no one gets to it because I’m scared of this or that?

There was this phrase that kept ringing in my head: You have to die empty. You can’t leave this earth with all of this gift that God has given you; you have to make sure you empty yourself. And since then, it’s just been back-to-back, which just gave me the courage.  

How did you react to " Finesse" in former President Barack Obama’s annual summer playlist in 2022?

Bro, I reacted crazy but my dad went bananas. [Laughs.] I was really grateful for that moment, but just watching my dad react like that to that experience was the highlight of that moment for me. He's such a fan of Barack Obama and to see that his son’s music is on the playlist, it just made his whole month. Literally. He still talks about it to this day. 

Experiences like that just make me feel very grateful to be here. Life has really been a movie, just watching a movie and just watching God work and being grateful for everything.

At first he [my dad] [didn’t support my career] because every parent wants their child to be a doctor, a lawyer, or an engineer. But when he saw the hunger [I have], and I was stubborn with [wanting] to do music, he just had to let me do it. And now he’s my number one fan. 

Your latest single, "Go Low" arrived just in time for festival season. What was it like exploring the live elements of your art at SXSW and your headlining show in London at the end of April?

I have always wanted to perform live. I’ve always loved performing; Pheelz on stage is the best Pheelz. Coming from church every Sunday, I would perform, lead prayers and worship, so I’ve always wanted to experience that again.

Having to perform live with my band around the world is incredible man. And I’ll forever raise the flag of amazing Afro live music because there’s a difference, you know? [Laughs.] There are so many elements and so many rhythms and so many grooves

I’ve noticed that much of your recent cover art for your singles and EPs is animated or digitally crafted. What’s the significance, if any, of this stylistic choice?

It still goes back to my childhood because I wasn’t expressive as a child; I wouldn’t really talk or say how I felt. I’d rather write about it, write a song about it, write a poem about it, or draw about it. I’d draw this mask and then put how I’m feeling into that character, so if I was angry, the mask would be raging and just angry.

The angry ones were the best ones, so that stuck with me even after I started coming out of my shell and talking and being expressive; that act of drawing a mask still stuck with me. And then I got into 3D, and I made a 3D version of the mask and I made a 3D character of the mask. So I made that the main character, and then I just started making my lyric videos, again post-COVID, and making them [lyric videos] to the characters and making the actual video mine as well.

In the future, I’m gonna get into fashion with the characters, I’m gonna get into animation and cartoons and video games, but I just wanna take it one step at a time with the music first. So, in all of my lyric videos, you get to experience the characters. There’s a fight [scene] among them in one of the lyric videos called "Ewele"; there is the lover boy in the lyric video for "Stand by You"; there are the bad boys in the lyric video for "Balling." They all have their own different characters so hopefully in the near future, I will get to make a feature film with them and just tell their story [and] build a world with them. I make sure I put extra energy into that, make most of them myself so the imprint of my energy is gonna be on it as well because it’s very important to me.

You and Usher have a lengthy working relationship. You first performed together in 2022 at the Global Citizen Festival, then produced/co-wrote "Coming Home" and "Ruin." Take us through the journey of how you two began collaborating.

It started through a meeting with [Epic Records CEO] L.A. Reid; he was telling me about the album that they were working on for Usher and I’m like, "Get me into the studio and lemme see what I can cook up." And they got me into the studio, [with Warner Records A&R] Marc Byers, and I wrote and produced "Coming Home." I already had "Ruin" a year before that. 

["Ruin"] was inspired by a breakup I just went through. Some of the greatest art comes from pain, I guess. That record was gonna be for my album but after I came home I saw how L.A. Reid and Usher reacted and how they loved it. I told them, "I have this other song, and I think you guys would like it for this album." And I played "Ruin," and the rest was history.

Before your upcoming EP, you’ve worked with Pharrell Williams, Kail Uchis, and the Chainsmokers in the studio. What do you consider when selecting potential collaborators?

To be honest, I did not look for these collabs. It was like life just brought them my way, because for me I’m open to any experience. I’m open to life; I do it the best I can at any moment, you understand? 

Having worked with Pharrell now, Dr. Dre, Timbaland, and the Chainsmokers, I’m still shocked at the fact that this is happening. But ultimately, I am grateful for the fact that this is happening. I am proud of myself as well for how far I’ve come. Someone like Timbaland — they are literally the reason why I started producing music; I would literally copy their beats, and try to sound like them growing up. 

[Now] I have them in the same room talking, and we’re teaching and learning, making music and feeding off of each others’ energy. It’s a dream come true, literally.

What's it like working with am electro-pop group like the Chainsmokers? How’d you keep your musical authenticity on "PTSD"?

That experiment ["PTSD"] was actually something I would play with back home. But the crazy thing is, it’s gonna be on the album now, not the EP. I would play it back home, like just trying to get the EDM and Afrohouse world to connect, cause I get in my Albert Einstein bag sometimes and just try and experiment. So when I met the Chainsmokers and like. "Okay, this is an opportunity to actually do it now," and we had a very lengthy conversation. 

We bonded first as friends before we went into the studio. We had an amazing conversation talking about music, [them] talking about pop and electronic music, and me talking about African music. So it was just a bunch of producers geeking out on what they love to do. And then we just talk through how we think the sound would be like really technical terms. Then we get into the studio and just bang it out. Hopefully, we get to make some more music because I think we can create something for the world together.

I’ve noticed you dress a bit eccentrically. Have you always had this aesthetic?

I’ve always dabbled in fashion. Even growing up, I would sketch for my sister and make this little clothing, so like I would kick up my uniform as well, make it baggy, make it flare pants, make it fly. 

I think that stuck with me until now, trying different things with fashion. And now I have like stylists I can talk to and throw ideas off of and create something together. So yeah, I want to get into the fashion space and see what the world has in store for me. 

What can fans expect as you’re putting the finishing touches on your upcoming EP Pheelz Good II and your album?

Pheelz Good II, [will be] a close to the Pheelz Good trilogy of Pheelz Good I, Pheelz Good Triibe Tape and Pheelz Good II. The album is going to be me being unapologetically myself still. But it will also be me being as vulnerable as I can be. 

It’s going to be me embracing my crayge [crazy rage]. Like just embracing me unapologetically and being me, being myself, and allowing my people to gravitate towards me, you get me. But I’m working on some really amazing music that I am so proud of. I’m so proud of the EP and the album.

Mr. Eazi’s Gallery: How The Afrobeats Star Brought His Long-Awaited Album To Life With African Art

Tyla has taken home the golden gramophone for Best African Music Performance — an all-new category — at the 2024 GRAMMYs, for "Water."

The South African starlet came ahead of ASAKE & Olamide ("Amapiano"); Burna Boy ("City BoysMiracle"); Davido Featuring Musa Keys ("UNAVAILABLE"); and Ayra Starr ("Rush"). 

The 22-year-old singer was taken aback upon winning the trophy, which was awarded by Jimmy Jam during the GRAMMYs Premiere Ceremony. 

"What the heck?!" she declared once on stage. "This is crazy, I never thought I’d say I won a GRAMMY at 22 years old."

Although coming up against stiff competition, including massive Afrobeats stars Burna Boy and Davido, the massive appeal of Tyla's hit song "Water" proved undeniable for GRAMMY voters. The amapiano-based pop song entered the Billboard Hot 100 last year, the first for an South African solo artist since Hugh Masekala in 1968. It later peaked at No. 7, making her the highest-charting African female solo musician in Billboard history. The song also went to No. 1 on the Billboard U.S. Afrobeats Songs and Hip-Hop/R&B charts. 

Tyla shouted out her family during her acceptance speech, saying "I know my mother’s crying somewhere in here." 

Tyla makes history as the first-ever Best African Music performance winner. The category was created in order for the Academy to honor music from the continent, according to Academy President Harvey Mason Jr. 

"I'd love to see us be able to honor even more music from Africa and other areas of the world," Mason said in an interview with GRAMMY.com. "The future of the Recording Academy is going to build on equity. We're not just honoring music breaking in our country — we're celebrating music from around the world." 

Keep checking this space for more updates from Music’s Biggest Night!

2024 GRAMMY Nominations: See The Full Winners & Nominees List (Updating Live)

It could be argued that 2023 was African music’ biggest year ever. The stars shined brighter, the hits went further, and the global music industry is taking notice. 

To wit, the Recording Academy announced the 2024 GRAMMY nominees for its inaugural Best African Music Performance award. Some of the continent’s biggest talents are getting the spotlight: Rising artists like Ayra Starr, ASAKE, and Tyla will compete against global megastars Burna Boy and Davido in a history-making category. 

But there was much more going on than hits and highlights. Afrobeats embraced continent-spanning sounds, from traditional genres to South African club music. Female artists from the continent shined as brightly as their male counterparts. Across the board, bold, experimental new sounds began to creep into the landscape. As an exciting year in Afrobeats and African music comes to a close, take a look at some of the trends that defined this broad soundscape in 2023. 

Afrobeats Stars Are Crossing Over in America

Even if the GRAMMYs hadn’t decided to shine a light on Africa’s music industry with the Best African Performance category, Afrobeats artists made major inroads into the American music market in 2023. ASAKE appeared on "Good Morning America" and "The Tonight Show" to promote his album Work of Art, and recently released a collab with H.E.R. And Burna Boy — one of the genre’s biggest forces — sold out Citi Field in New York and played to a massive Coachella crowd. 

Afrobeats artists played festivals across the country, none more significant than the first-ever stateside editions of AfroNation. Burna Boy headlined both legs of the genre-specific festival alongside WizKid in Miami and Davido in Detroit, while each one featured an undercard full of incredible artists. Rema, ASAKE, Ckay, and BNXN performed in Miami, while Detroit featured Kizz Daniel, P-Square, Stonebwoy, and others. 

But in terms of chart success, one song dominated above all. Driven by a remix featuring Selena Gomez, Rema’s "Calm Down" smashed Billboard records. The song became the longest-running No. 1 in the history of the U.S. Afrobeats chart, spending more than a full year at the top. It eventually crossed over to the Hot 100, also spending a on the chart and becoming the longest-charting African song in its history, although it fell short of the top, peaking at No. 3. 

There’s more where that came from. Rema’s success with "Calm Down" shows the potential Afrobeats artists have to connect with audiences across the world, including North America. Some are already looking for ways to integrate American music into their own songs.

Amapiano Is Everywhere

South Africa’s long history of flirting with house music — from kwaito in the post-Apartheid ‘90s, to the Afro-house of Black Coffee and Da Capo — is finally taking the country’s music global thanks to amapiano. The dance genre typified by sweltering grooves, sizzling shaker rhythms, and the bombastic log drum, was all over Afrobeats this year. 

Heartthrob Ckay tapped the sound on "Hallelujah" with Blaqbonez. Davido collaborated with Musa Keys on his GRAMMY-nominated track "Unavailable" [fellow nominees in the Best African Music Performance category are "Amapiano" by ASAKE & Olamide, Burna Boy's "City Boys," "Rush" by Ayra Starr, and Tyla's "Water."]  And Mr. Eazi recruited Focalistic, Major League DJz, and others for the debut record of his ChopLife Soundsystem side project. Artists as far away as China are also putting their own spin on the sound, such as Vinida Weng with "WAIYA." 

But no one in Afrobeats has embraced amapiano quite as much as ASAKE. His inventive take on the genre incorporates Indigenous sounds from Nigeria to create a totally new and personal style. Songs like "Basquiat" and "Amapiano" reverberate with amapiano log drums and cymbal samples as well as choral background vocals. 

America has caught amapiano fever as well. South African starlet Tyla’s R&B-inflected "Water" became a crossover hit, unseating Rema from No. 1 on the Billboard Afrobeats chart and reaching (as of this writing) a record-setting No. 1 10 on the Hot 100 — the highest-ever for a South African artist. Both U.S. legs of AfroNation also featured a Piano Power stage, with sets by Maphorisa, Musa Keys, Major League DJz, DBN Gogo, Focalistic, TXC, and Uncle Waffles, who also performed at Coachella. 

Female Artists Are On The Rise

Although Afrobeats has largely been dominated by male artists — especially the big three of Burna Boy, WizKid, and Davido — the genre’s female stars are also proving their might. Tems gained fame thanks to features on songs like WizKid’s "Essence," but stepped further into the spotlight following the release of 2022’s For Broken Ears. Her latest song, "Me & U," is a soul-searching track that doubles as a love song and a paean to the almighty. 

Tems' continues to receive industry recognition as well. At the 2023 GRAMMYs, she took home a golden gramophone for Best Melodic Rap Performance "Wait for U," a collab with Future and Drake. Her work co-writing Rihanna’s "Lift Me Up" from the Black Panther: Wakanda Forever soundtrack earned an Oscar nomination, and the song is nominated for Best Song Written For Visual Media at the 2024 GRAMMYs, alongside Barbie The Album's "Dance The Night," "I'm Just Ken," "What Was I Made For?" and "Barbie World.

Ayra Starr, meanwhile, is universally seen as Afrobeats’ next big thing. The Benin-born starlet’s triumphant song "Rush" notched a GRAMMY nod, and she’s continued her dominant streak with singles such as "Sability" and "Stamina" with Tiwa Savage and Young Jonn. She’s also featured on tracks by WizKid, Ninho, David Guetta, and Tyla. 

And speaking of the South African, Tyla’s success with "Water" also highlights the power of female Amapiano artists, none are as mighty as Uncle Waffles. The eSwatini native gained a huge hit with "Tanzania," and played it out to feverish crowds at Coachella and AfroNation Miami. 

Ghana’s Scene Is Buzzing

Two countries away from Nigeria, Ghana’s music scene is bursting with creativity. For proof, look no further than Atlanta-raised AMAARAE’s Fountain Baby, one of the most buzzed-about pop releases on either side of the Atlantic. The record fuses Accra-attitude with 2000s R&B futurism for a bold, dangerously sexy sound that’s totally unique. 

Black Sherif, meanwhile, reps the streets. As a major representative of asakaa, the country’s take on drill music, the rapper has taken the gritty sound of Ghana’s ghettos to new places this year, touring his 2022 record The Villain I Never Was and its hit single "Kwaku the Traveler" at the MOBO Awards in London, Wireless Festival in Abu Dhabi, and events across the U.S. His latest track "OH NO" goes into ambitious new territory with influences added from highlife and soul. 

Finally, Mr. Eazi may be Nigerian by birth, but Ghana is where he made his name and developed his signature "banku" sound, mixing Afrobeats with highlife and other local influences. After 10 years in the business, he finally released his debut album The Evil Genius with a uniquely artful twist: Every track is accompanied by a painting executed by an African artist. Eazi has called the album his most personal work yet. 

Afrobeats Artists Are Defying Genres

Burna Boy took on hip-hop and pretty much everyone else hopped onto amapiano, but in 2023 artists in Afrobeats and beyond took turns trying to expand the genre. Fresh off the success of "Calm Down," Rema delivered a scorching new EP. Ravage flung the singer into dangerous new territory, with dramatic lyrics and dark, hyperpop-leaning production on tracks like "Don’t Leave." 

Up-and-coming artists are also trying to break away from the pack with experimental new sounds. Blaqbonez, featured on Ckay’s "Hallelujah," spits over bouncy Igbo drumming on "NYEM EGO." Brazy, meanwhile, blended Afrobeats with Jersey Club on "omg." 

Last but not least, one of the most interesting Afrobeats-adjacent songs of the year was made in London. Nigerian-British Jim Legxacy’s "dj" boldly fuses hyperactive Afrobeats drums with Midwest emo guitars and a warbling, R&B-esque vocal performance. "You used to promise me you’d teach me how to DJ" may be one of the most instantly devastating opening lines of the year. 

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No matter who takes home the GRAMMY for Best African Music Performance, they’ll be making history in the process. One of three newly-added categories for the 2024 GRAMMYs, the award is a breakthrough for the African music industry, signaling the commercial and cultural prowess of the continent’s music.

"Giving African music its own category would highlight and celebrate the diversity and richness of Africa," Shawn Thwaites, project manager at the Recording Academy, said in a roundtable about the new category. "This is a great step forward!" 

African musicians have a long history at the GRAMMYs, from Ali Farka Touré to Wizkid. Artists of any African musical style can gain a nomination, whether they make Ethio-jazz, Ghanaian drill, high life, or kwassa. This year, however, one genre’s stars are shining particularly bright: Nigerian Afrobeats stars Burna Boy, ASAKE, Davido, and Ayra Star all netted nominations. 

And yet, this can’t be said to have been a conventional year for Afrobeats. The genre’s best and brightest have embraced the sensual, pulsating sound of amapiano, the South Africa-born house offshoot that has taken clubs from London to Lagos by storm. Three of the five tracks nominated take stylistic cues from amapiano, with ASAKE even namechecking the genre in the title of his nominated track. Meanwhile, South African Tyla’s blend of ama and R&B shows the pervasive nature of piano power across the field. 

Learn more about the nominees below, and see who takes the pioneering award during the 2024 GRAMMYs, held on Sunday, Feb. 4. 

"Amapiano"- ASAKE & Olamide

There are more established artists in this field, but none feel as momentous as Asake, whose rapid rise to fame feels at times like the Afrobeats equivalent of Beatlemania. Thanks to his deeply charismatic persona and spectacular stage presence, he’s become massively popular with just two albums under his belt. And speaking of spectacle, earlier this year he became the fourth Nigerian artist, behind Wizkid, Davido, and Burna Boy, to sell out London’s O2 Arena, entering on a helicopter.

The key to his appeal lies in his embrace of sounds from all over the continent, especially amapiano. His album Work of Art mixes the popular Afro-house offshoot with Mauritian séga music as well as fújì, an Indigenous Yoruba genre from Nigeria. 

"Amapiano" works as both a statement on the title genre’s popularity and a subtle flip on its conventions, rearranging elements such as the iconic log drum and combining them with dynamic rapping from Asake and featured artist Olamide. The song’s hook — "Steadily, steadily, heavily, we are getting lit" — is especially irresistible. 

"City Boys" - Burna Boy

There’s not a bigger star in Afrobeats, or even the whole of Africa itself, than Burna Boy. He nabbed two consecutive Best Global Album GRAMMY nods for his albums Twice as Tall and African Giant, and he’s also collaborated with global stars such as Ed Sheeran and Justin Bieber.

After earning his first UK No. 1 album this year with the classic hip-hop influenced I Told Them…, featuring appearances from 21 Savage, J. Cole, RZA, and GZA, he’s firmly in his imperial era. It’s hard to get away with releasing a track called "Sittin’ On Top of the World" if you’re not doing just that. 

Yet it was "City Boys," that caught the Recording Academy’s attention this year. Produced by MD$ and Ruuben with a sample from Jeremih’s sultry R&B classic "Birthday Sex," the stomping, glamorous track reminiscent of late-’90s Timbaland beats highlights the path of influence from hip-hop to Afrobeats. In the song’s flashy video, Burna Boy rides around the streets of Los Angeles in a yellow Ferrari and matches an iced-out Richard Mille watch with a Wu-Tang Clan durag, paying tribute to hip-hop’s extravagance and braggadocio. The track also topped the UK Afrobeats Singles Chart in September

"UNAVAILABLE" - Davido Featuring Musa Keys  

Asake may have risen to fame based on his embrace of Amapiano, but Davido has been boosting the genre for even longer. Back in 2021 he joined forces with amapiano DJ and MC Focalistic on "Champion Sound," giving the style a crucial early foothold into the Afrobeats scene.

"Champion Sound" eventually became the lead single for Davido’s 2023 project Timeless, released after the tragic accidental death of his three-year-old son. It’s a record dominated by the forward momentum of Amapiano beats, and "UNAVAILABLE," the GRAMMY-nominated single from the album, is no exception. A brighter, smoother take on the sound with triumphant choral vocals on the hook, it features confident verses from Davido and collaborator Musa Keys. 

Considered one of Afrobeats’ big three along with Burna Boy and Wizkid, Davido first broke onto the scene in 2012. He’s since dueled with the other two artists for records and chart placements, such as Timeless beating Burna Boy’s album Love, Damini as the biggest debut for an album on Spotify Nigeria earlier. The album also gained the most single-day streams for any African album on Apple Music. 

"Rush" - Ayra Starr

With an anthemic tone reminiscent of Rihanna’s "Diamonds," Ayra Starr’s track was boosted up the global charts thanks to TikTok virality. Born in French-speaking Benin to Nigerian parents, the 21-year-old moved frequently during childhood, eventually ending up in Lagos to pursue music.

After a brief stint in modeling, she signed to the star-making Mavin Records label in 2020, only their third female act. This nomination is only the latest accolade for her: she’s already earned three Nigerian number one singles, a feature on Wizkid’s track "2 Sugar," and a spot on the soundtrack to Creed III. 

"Rush" is all about staying focused and grinding towards success. Starr sings about the cutthroat nature of the working world with determined fierceness: "Me no get the time for the hate and the bad energy / Got my mind on my money." The track may have a distinctive Afrobeats clave rhythm and Nigerian pidgin lyrics, but its glimmering synths recall early 2010s electro-pop from the likes of Robyn or Carly Rae Jepsen. 

"Water" - Tyla

The youngest nominee on this list and the lone South African artist, 21-year-old Tyla is already a star in her home country, having been nominated for two South African Music Awards.

With "Water," the lead single from her upcoming debut EP, she also became the first solo musician from South Africa in 55 years to chart on the Billboard Hot 100. Largely driven forward by a popular TikTok challenge, the song debuted at 67 and has peaked at 21 so far. 

It’s easy to see the crossover appeal of "Water," which could be mistaken for an American pop song if not for the sweltering Amapiano instrumental underneath. Singing entirely in English, Tyla’s vocal delivery brims with confidence and desire, especially over the chorus — "Make me sweat, make me hotter, make me lose my breath, make me water" — while the song’s sweltering video turns up the heat further. 

The 2024 GRAMMYs, officially known as the 66th GRAMMY Awards, returns to Los Angeles' Crypto.com Arena on Sunday, Feb. 4, 2024, and will broadcast live on the CBS Television Network and stream live and on-demand on Paramount+ at 8-11:30 p.m. ET/5-8:30 p.m. PT. 

The Recording Academy and GRAMMY.com do not endorse any particular artist, submission or nominee over another. The results of the GRAMMY Awards, including winners and nominees, are solely dependent on the Recording Academy’s Voting Membership.

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