Grammys 2026 African Winners
Grammys 2026 African Winners/ Full Grammy Winners List
This article is being updated live as winners are announced at the 2026 GRAMMY Awards.
The Recording Academy is revealing the winners of the 2026 GRAMMY Awards today, spotlighting the artists and recordings that shaped the past year in music. The ceremony will take place at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles, with a global broadcast on CBS and streaming available on Paramount+.
**The Nominees**
The Best African Music Performance category highlights the diversity and evolution of African sound in 2025. Burna Boy earns a nomination with “Love,” while Davido and Omah Lay are recognized for the emotionally rich, radio-friendly “With You.” Uganda’s Eddy Kenzo appears alongside Mehran Matin for “Hope & Love,” while Ayra Starr and Wizkid‘s smooth, infectious “Gimme Dat” also makes the list, joined by Tyla‘s “Push 2 Start.”
Angélique Kidjo returns to familiar territory with a nomination for Best Global Music Performance for “Jerusalema,” further cementing her legacy as one of Africa’s most influential cultural ambassadors. Burna Boy continues his global run with a Best Global Music Album nomination, marking the 11th time his work has been recognized by the Academy.
Nigerian-American country artist Shaboozey earns a nod for Best Country Solo Performance with “Good News” and also appears in the Best Country Duo/Group Performance category for “Amen,” alongside Jelly Roll. In the Best Global Music Album category, two defining forces in African music stand side by side: Burna Boy with *No Sign of Weakness* and Senegalese legend Youssou N’Dour with *Éclairer le monde (Light the World)*, an album that reflects his enduring role as both innovator and cultural voice.
In recent years, the Recording Academy has expanded and diversified its membership, bringing in more voters with lived experience across a wider range of musical traditions. As the voting body becomes more representative of global music communities, the awards naturally follow, creating space where African artists are no longer peripheral but central to the conversation.
The 2025 GRAMMYs clearly reflected this shift. Tems won Best African Music Performance for “Love Me JeJe,” a moment that underscored both her continued rise and the Academy’s growing recognition of African music as a contemporary global force. South African flautist Wouter Kellerman also took home a win in the New Age/Ambient category, his third career GRAMMY, showing that African musicians are thriving across genres that once overlooked them. Even where wins did not follow, the presence of African nominees in major categories marked real progress.
The question now is how far this influence will go and how deeply it will continue to shape the global soundscape. What’s clear is that African music is firmly in the room. You can hear it in the sound, see it in the style, and feel it in the pulse of the present.
