Entertainment

Timeline: Four Nigerians, Other African Grammy Awards Winners

Published

1 year ago

February 1, 2024

The biggest music event, the Grammy Awards, will be going down with its 66th edition in Los Angeles on Sunday, with a converging of the best of music stars from Africa and around the world, and this year’s edition won’t be any different.

Since the 1960s, the recognition of exceptional projects by African artists has been a tradition, marked by South Africa’s Mariam Makeba becoming the first African artist to receive the Grammy Awards.

Here are 14 African acts that have won Grammy awards.

Makeba (South Africa)

In 1966, South Africa’s Miriam Makeba, also known as Mama Africa, became the first African recording artist to win the Grammy Awards, just seven years after the award was first held.

Makeba won Best Folk Record for her album “An Evening With Belafonte/Makeba,” with American singer Harry Belafonte at the 8th Grammy awards .

Sade Adu (Nigerian-British)

Helen Folasade Adu was born in Ibadan, to a Yoruba-ancestry father and an English mother. She was the lead vocalist for her band, Sade, which bears her name.

In 1986, she won the ‘Best New Artist’ Grammy Awards. She also won the ‘Best R&B Performance By A Duo or Group with Vocal’ for “No Ordinary Love” (1993), the ‘Best Pop Vocal Album for’ “Lovers Rock” (2001), and the ‘Best R&B Performance By A Duo or Group with Vocals’ for “Soldier of Love” (2011) at the Grammy Awards.

Ladysmith Black Mambazo (South Africa)

In 1988, South Africa’s male choral group won the ‘Best Traditional Folk Recording’ for the song ‘Shaka Zulu’.

The group received 17 nominations and won four more Grammy awards: Best Traditional World Music Album for “Raise Your Spirit Higher” (2004), Best Traditional World Music Album for “Ilembe: Honoring Shaka Zulu” (2009), Best World Music Album for “Live: Singing for Peace Around the World” (2013), and Best World Music Album for Shaka Zulu Revisited: 30th Anniversary Celebration (2018).

Ali Farka Touré (Mali)

Regarded as one of Africa’s most internationally renowned musicians, Toure received a total of five nominations, winning three times at the Grammy Awards.

He won the Best World Music Album for “Talking Timbuktu” (1994) and the Best World Music Album for “In The Heart Of The Moon” (2005). Following his death in 2006, he was posthumously awarded Best Traditional World Music Album for “Ali and Toumani” (2010) at the 53rd Grammy Awards.

Cesária Évora (Cape Verde)

Évora started as a club singer in the port city of Mindelo and became famous as the “Barefoot Diva,” performing without shoes in tribute to the poor.

She received six nominations, winning the Best Contemporary World Music Album for “Voz dámor” (2004) at the 47th Grammy Awards.

Youssou N’Dour (Senegal)

Ranked as one of the greatest singers of all time, N’Dour helped develop a style of popular Senegalese music known by all Senegambians.

He won the Best Contemporary World Music Album for “Egypt” (2005).

RedOne (Morocco)

Nadir Khayat popularly known as ‘Red One’, is considered one of the most influential record producer artists in contemporary music.

He has eight Grammy Awards nominations, winning Best Dance Recording for “Poker Face” (2010) and Pop Vocal Album for “The Fame Monster” (2011).

Tinariwen (Mali/Algeria/Libya)

The group consists of individuals from the nomadic Tuareg people of the Sahara.

They won the World Music Album for “Tassili” (2012) at the 54th Grammy Awards.

Wouter Kellerman (South Africa)
Kellerman is a South African flautist, producer, and composer who explores the versatility of the instrument and fuses classical and contemporary sounds.

He won the Best New Age Album for “Winds Of Samsara” (2015) and the Best Global Music Performance for “Bayethe” (2022) at the 57th and 64th Grammy Awards respectively.

Angélique Kidjo (Benin)

Beninese-French artiste Angélique Kidjo is the African artist with the most Grammy Awards.

She won in 2007, 2015, 2016, 2020, and 2022 in the categories: ‘Best Contemporary World Music Album,’ Best World Music Album (won three times), and Best Global Music Album,” respectively.

Burna Boy (Nigeria)

Nigerian Afrobeats star Damini Ogulu (Burna Boy) is the first Nigerian male artist to win the Grammy Awards for an original work.

Burna Boy won the Best Global Music Album for “Twice As Tall” (2021). At the 66th Grammy Awards, he received four nominations.

Wizkid (Nigeria)

Ayodeji Balogun ‘Wizkid’ is regarded as one of Nigeria’s greatest musical acts.

Wizkid won the Best Music Video category, for his collaboration on the track “Brown Skin Girl” with Beyoncé and Blue Ivy at the 63rd Grammy Awards in 2021.

Black Coffee (South Africa)

“The DJ/producer’s victory represents a shift around ideas of what African musicians are capable of, from traditional genres and folk music to the high-tech world of electronic dance music,” Grammy stated.

Black Coffee won the Best Dance/Electronic Music Album for “Subconsciously” (2022) at the 64th Grammy Awards.

Tems (Nigeria)

Temilade Openiyi popularly known as Tems won the Best Melodic Rap Performance for “WAIT FOR U” (Future, Drake & Tems) at the 65th Grammy Awards.

Entertainment

VIDEO: Fire Guts Actress Iyabo Ojo’s Office

Published

9 hours ago

July 9, 2025

Editor

Nollywood star Iyabo Ojo has confirmed that a fire broke out at her office in Lagos on Tuesday evening, destroying parts of the property and several valuables.

The actress shared a video on Instagram showing the aftermath of the blaze—smoke-stained walls, scorched furniture, and charred debris scattered across the staircase and office space.

“This just happened today the 8th of July 2025, around 7pm. My office building caught fire,” she wrote.

Ojo praised the Nigerian Fire Service for their swift response, which helped contain the flames before they could cause further damage.

“Thank you to the Nigerian Fire service and my staff for salvaging what was left. Thankfully no lives were lost. The devil tested us today but God said no.

“With God on my side we will bounce back bigger and better,” she added.

She also thanked her team, describing the experience as shocking but expressing relief that no one was hurt.

The exact cause of the fire is yet to be determined.

This incident comes just months after a similar tragedy struck fellow actress Mercy Aigbe, whose Lagos home was destroyed by fire in December 2024.

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Entertainment

Tiwa Savage Shares Emotional Moment With Son

Published

2 days ago

July 7, 2025

Editor

Afrobeats sensation, Tiwa Savage, has opened up about the emotional rollercoaster of motherhood, describing it as both challenging and deeply fulfilling.

In a heartfelt video shared via her Instagram story, the award-winning singer shared a touching experience involving her son, Jamil Balogun. Tiwa revealed that after scolding him for misbehaving, she was taken aback by his quiet response.

“I expected him to be upset. But instead, he came to sit beside me on the couch, just seeking comfort.”

ALSO READ:Tiwa Savage Inspires Fans With Honesty, Strength As A Single Mother

The moment, Tiwa explained, reminded her of the deep emotional connection between a mother and her child, and how those little gestures can make even the toughest parenting moments worthwhile.

“Last night, I was reminded of one of the hardest things about being a mom: you still have to discipline your child and be strict, even when it breaks your heart.

“I’m a very, very strict mother. Everyone knows this. But last night, I went off on him. And this is why he melts my heart so much… I woke up and saw that he had quietly come to sleep next to me. I had slept on the couch, and he still came to lie beside me, my baby. I was shouting earlier… ahhh. Yet he still came close, seeking comfort,” she said.

Tiwa concluded by expressing how, despite the difficulties, motherhood remains the most rewarding experience in her life.

“Being a mother is tough. But it’s also the best feeling in the world,” she added.

Entertainment

Linc Edochie Told Me His Ex-wife Cheated On Him, Smokes Weed – Yinka Theisen [VIDEO]

Published

2 days ago

July 7, 2025

Editor

Yinka Theisen has disclosed that she started a relationship with Linc Edochie after he told her that his estranged wife cheated on him.

Edochie got married to his estranged wife, Amaka Paula, in December 2010, and they shared two children together.

In May 2025, Linc Edochie got engaged to his new partner, Yinka Theisen.

A month after their engagement, Linc broke up with Yinka for getting involved in Queen May and Yul Edochie’s divorce drama on social media.

However, reacting to the controversy in an interview with actor Uche Maduagwu, Yinka Theisen narrated that she started a relationship with Linc after he accused his ex-wife of cheating on him and smoking weed.

“What Linc did to me, I’m shocked. I can’t lie to you, I’m shocked. This is a man a lot of people don’t know, the family (Edochie) had a tragic event recently. And I was there for him. I came to stay with him in Lagos, I supported him. I will just leave it at that because it’s a sensitive thing, and I don’t want to bring out a family secret that a lot of people don’t know about.

“I started a relationship with him after he told me a very, very sad thing about how his wife was sleeping around in Abuja with all the Alhajis, all these things I have text messages of and that she’s a weed head. She smokes weed every day, and that she withdraws the medication of their last child that had seizures.

“So we became very close in the sense of just emotionally supporting him because I couldn’t believe that a woman would repeatedly cheat on such an awesome man.”

Watch the video below: