The Grammy award is viewed as the most prestigious music award any artist could think of winning, which is why Nigerian artists take pride in getting their albums nominated.
Over the course of time since the inception of the Grammy award, several Nigerian musicians have been nominated as individuals for their albums or in collaboration with other artists.
We compiled a list of Nigerian artists that have been acknowledged for their creativity and art with album nominations.
List of Nigerian Albums Nominated Grammy Awards
5. ‘Odu’ by King Sunny Ade
King Sunny Ade is one of the most influential Juju musicians in Nigeria. He has been nominated twice for the Grammys for two different albums. He was nominated for the Best Ethnic or Traditional Folk Recording for the album “Syncro System” in 1984 and the Best World Music Album for “ODU” in 1999. Although he has not won any of the categories, his impact by being one of the first artists to get nominated makes his achievement stand out.
The studio album “Odu” was released in 1998 by Atlantic Records. It is an 11 track album that was produced by Andrew Frankel.
4. ‘Love Drum Talk’ by Babatunde Olatunji
Babatunde has been nominated once with his own album, “Love Drum Talk,” which was released in 1998. Babatunde, however, has won once at the Grammys with Mickey Hart’s album “Planet Drums” for Best World Music Album.
3. ‘Twice As Tall’ by Burna Boy
Burna Boy has bagged two nominations with his own album twice for the Grammys. The albums “African Giant” and “Twice as Tall” have both been nominated for the prestigious award.
The talented musician has in fact bagged an award for the Best World Music Album with the album “Twice as Tall” in 2021.
2. ‘Made In Lagos’ by Wizkid
Starboy, Wizkid, has two Grammy nominations to his name with the album “Made In Lagos” for the upcoming award ceremony in April 2022. He was nominated for the categories of Best Global Music Album and Best Global Music Performance for his hit song “Essence” of the “Made In Lagos” album.
Wizkid is, however, a Grammy award winner in the Best Video category for his international collaboration with Beyonce on “Brown Skin Girl.”
1. ‘Africa for Africa’ by Femi Kuti
The list would not be complete without mentioning an Afro-beat legend. Femi Kuti has one of the highest Grammy nominations for an African, as he has been nominated six times for the prestigious award. Although he has not won any yet, the consistent nominations indicate the appreciation for his art. Here are his albums that have been nominated: Fight To Win (2003), Day By Day (2010), Africa for Africa (2012), No Place For My Dream (2014), and others.
