Nigerian superstars Ayo ‘Wizkid’ Balogun and Burna Boy, real name Damini Ogulu have become 2021 Grammy Award recipients.
Wizkid for the first time won for his role on ‘Brown Skin Girl’ off the 2019 album, ‘The Lion King’, at the 63rd Grammy Award.
He won the award alongside Beyonce, who owns the song and featured artists, Saint Jhn and Blue Ivy.
The award will also go to Jenn Nkiru who directed the video.
Burna Boy won the Best Global Music Album category while Wizkid won the Best Music Video for his song with Beyoncé; Brown Skin Girl, from Lion King: The Gift album.
Beyoncé’s daughter Blue Ivy was also a winner on the song.
Burna Boy, real name Damini Ogulu, a nominee for a second consecutive year, won with his Twice As Tall album.
The Grammys described Twice As Tall as “a masterclass in the vibe and hustle that have made Burna Boy an international musical force”.
“[He] continues to torch limitations, seamlessly blending styles and genres and fearlessly fuelling the fire heating the melting pot of pop, Afrobeat, dancehall, reggae and more,” it said.
The album features a wide range of international artists such as Stormzy, Youssou Ndour, Naughty By Nature, and Chris Martin of Coldplay, and had Sean Combs as executive producer.
Brand Spur Nigeria recalls that Burna Boy was nominated in the same category in 2019 – then known as Best World Music Album – but lost out to Angelique Kidjo at the awards ceremony in 2020.
However, Kidjo dedicated her win to him, saying: “Burna Boy is among those young artists that come from Africa that is changing the way our continent is perceived and the way that African music is the bedrock of all music.”
Born in Nigeria’s Port Harcourt, Burna Boy released his first album, LIFE, an acronym for Leaving an Impact For Eternity, in 2013.
That album was followed by the release of Redemption in 2015 and Outside in 2018 that included the international hit track, Ye.
