Almost every music enthusiast agrees that the Grammy Award is the biggest music award any artist can ever receive. It’s the stamp of approval. So powerful that even a nomination is often celebrated.
However, since the Grammys began in 1959, only 11 Africans have ever won. If that fact isn’t jarring enough, until 2024, Africa didn’t even have a dedicated category.
The Best African Music Performance category itself is barely two years old. You can argue that it’s only a late recognition for a continent that has influenced global sound for decades. 
DID YOU MISS: 11 Africans Who Are Grammy Winners
Cobhams Asuquo Thinks Africa Needs Its Own Grammys
Nigerian music producer Cobhams Asuquo echoes this call in a recent video. His call comes after Nigerian music artists were shut out at the 68th Grammy Awards. He described the Grammys as a system that dangles validation and withdraws it like a toxic ex.
In a recent video, he said; “I think Grammy is using Nigerians to boost the GDP of Los Angeles. It’s like a carrot dangling in front of us and it goes away. I think we need to build something that is ours. It’s only America that will do superbowl and be playing it themselves.”
To him, the award organisers use Nigerian music to boost Western cultural and economic ecosystems. In return, the Grammys offer little more than symbolic recognition.
His argument was structural. According to him, Africa’s real problem isn’t access to foreign awards. He believes the real problem is the absence of strong, respected institutions at home that reward excellence on African terms. He calls for Africans to stop chasing validation and start building value.
Could this value be through an African Grammy Award?
Even A Multiple Grammy Award Winner Shares This Sentiment
After winning Best African Music Performance for the second time, Tyla seized her celebratory moment to call for broader African representation. Her message recognises the limits African artists face.
Indeed, global platforms and visibility matter. But one category cannot carry an entire continent’s creative identity. What’s better than recognition? Representation! But building yours is best.
All in favour of an African Grammy Awards say Aye!
ALSO READ: Which African Artists Won Big at the 2026 Grammys?
Kenya Secured Rights to Host First African Grammy Awards in 2025
Don’t forget the 2025 news that could change the conversation. Kenya invested $3.9 million to host the first African Grammy Awards.
With actual funding and agreements, Kenya partnered with the Recording Academy to become the African headquarters. The goal is to build a creative infrastructure and long-term ecosystem thinking.
Could this move finally be a good step toward our cultural ownership?
Is It Time for an African Grammy Awards?
Yes. But not as a competition, replacement, or out of bitterness. An African Grammy Awards would bring balance. We shouldn’t need external validation to affirm our creative greatness. Instead, we must create systems that recognise it, protect it, reward it, and scale it.
The elders (me) also say that real power isn’t in being invited; it’s in building the house.
About The Author
Keep Up to Date with the Most Important News
