The 67th Annual Grammy Awards are just around the corner, set to go live on February 2, 2025, at 5 PM PST (2 AM WAT on February 3) from the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles with Trevor Noah as the host for the fifth consecutive year. Other confirmed award presenters include Taylor Swift, SZA, and Cardi B.
Since Tyla’s win at the inaugural Best African Music Performance category in 2024—a feat she achieved in her first-ever Grammy nomination—after she defeated the likes of Asake, Burna Boy, Davido, and Ayra Starr, the category sparked plenty of debate over who should or shouldn’t have taken the award. Now, for its second edition, the 2025 nominations feature an all-Nigerian lineup, and no matter who takes home the award this time around, it already feels like a win for Nigerian music as a whole.
The Best African Music Performance Category this year:
- Burna Boy – Higher
- Yemi Alade – Tomorrow
- Asake & Wizkid – MMS
- Tems – Love Me Jeje
- Chris Brown featuring Davido & Lojay – Sensational
This lineup of course represents the finest from Afrobeats.
But Beyond the African-specific categories, Nigerian artists also secured spots in globally acclaimed awards:
- Tems, for:
- Best R&B Song for Burning
- Best Global Music Album for Born in the Wild
- Rema, one of Afrobeats’ leading exports, for:
- Best Global Music Album for HEIS
Both artists, who are among Afrobeats’ biggest and most successful performers over the past two years, are set to compete with each other in this category, which previously saw Burna Boy win with Twice as Tall in 2021.
With just 24 hours to go, we anticipate how these Nigerian stars will fare at the most prestigious music awards. Artists like Asake, Rema, Davido, Lojay, and Yemi Alade could well leave the show with their first-ever award, while Burna Boy, Tems and Wizkid have the chance to secure their second.
