As the anticipation builds for the 66th Grammy Awards scheduled for February 4, recent revelations from organizers have stirred controversy as Nigerian stars Wizkid and Tems find themselves missing from the official list of African Grammy winners.
The list, which spans achievements from the 1960s, starts with the late South African singer Miriam Makeba, followed by iconic figures like Sade Adu, Burna Boy, and others. Notably, Wizkid and Tems, who secured Grammy wins in 2021 and 2023, respectively, for their notable contributions to global music, are conspicuously absent.
Here is the compilation of the 10 African Grammy winners acknowledged by the Grammys:
- 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
The controversy arises as both Wizkid and Tems made significant contributions to Grammy-winning projects, with Wizkid winning in 2021 for “Brown Skin Girl” and Tems securing her win in 2023 for “Wait for U.” The omission of these recent achievements has sparked discussions on social media platforms, questioning the accuracy and completeness of the Grammy’s official African winners list.
