Grammy Awards Snubs Wizkid and Tems in List of African Artists, Sparking Backlash from fans
Ahead of the 2024 Grammys on February 4, the Recording Academy released a list of notable African artists since the 1960s.
But the roster sparked outrage online for omitting Nigerian superstars Wizkid and Tems.
Leading up to music’s biggest night, the Academy curated a Grammy history list spotlighting African talent.
However, Nigerian fans expressed disappointment that afrobeats stars Wizkid and Tems didn’t make the cut, despite recent Grammy nominations and wins.
According to the rundown, Miriam Makeba, the late South African songstress, stood as the first African winner of a Grammy award.
Sade, the pop sensation, followed suit, securing her place as the first Nigerian to clinch the global accolade, while Burna Boy emerged as the most recent and final Nigerian to bag the golden microphone.
Grammy Award – Africa Winners List
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
Recall in March 2021, Wizkid bagged his first-ever Grammy award for his role in ‘Brown Skin Girl’, a 2019 song by Beyonce, the American musician. The project won the ‘Best Music Video’ category.
In 2023, Tems won her own first-ever Grammy award. The Afrobeats singer won the ‘Best Melodic Rap Performance’ category for her role in ‘Wait for U’, the 2022 hit song by Future featuring Drake.
Upon the release of the list by the organisers of the Grammys, questions were asked about what yardsticks were used to assemble the list.
