By Ayo Onikoyi

It was inconceivable and downright  brutal that Nigeria would have 11 nominations at the Grammys without a single award to the country’s honour. With 11 nominations, we never had it so good and yet so bad.

Even Burna Boy, who made history as the first African to perform at the premium ceremony, wouldn’t see that as much of a consolation. Especially, considering he has had a total of 10 nominations so far for the honours with a single win. And the joke of it all is that South African Tyla that knocked them off the gong did so with a contraption of an Afrobeats genre of music.

Perhaps, Burna Boy would be consoled by the fact that it was just another day in the office at the Grammys as he has become a sort of a permanent feature in the picture. And well, his stellar performance, joined by Brandy and 21 Savage at the event, would put him in a new light on the global stage with bounty harvest in the offing.

 However, the same cannot be said of Davido, who was obviously emotionally consumed by the prospect of winning a Grammys for the first time in his career. Among the top 3 Nigerian artists, Burna Boy, Wizkid and Davido, only Davido is yet to have a sniff. Yeah, he sure had a sniff but still a long way from having a taste and being on the menu in 3 places couldn’t come up to scratch.

The Grammys may be shot to hell but there are no sentiments. And Davido and his team couldn’t warm their way through enough playing the role of event management team. At least, a video that surfaced on social media showed the singer and his team, arranging the hall and cleaning up chairs, trying to look dutiful. But it was all lost on the Grammys’ henchmen, given how the night panned out.

Win win for Afrobeats

The 66th Grammy Awards drew nearly 17 million viewers worldwide, it’s highest since 2020. Some have argued the influence of Afrobeats might have played an impact in the numbers attained this year, and so, many Nigerians were more aggrieved that the Award is playing us for suckers and using Nigerian Afrobeats as a clout for wider reach.

Whether true or false, the claim seems to have a bit of a grip in its right because all nominees for the Best African Performance made it on the strength of their Afrobeats content. Davido, Tyla, Burna Boy, Ayra Starr and Asake had deep Afrobeats influence in the song that got them the nod. Even Tyla, who is South African, had to win with Afrobeats influence.

While Davido and others may not have gotten the gramophone statuette, they got the Grammys’ medals as nominees. That’s why they say a nomination is as good as a win.

Grammys statement on winning

According to the CEO of the Grammys, Harvey Manson Jr, there are criteria for winning the Grammys and it is entirely up to the members of the Recording Academy who vote for the winners.

In an interview that has since gone viral, he said, “First,  you have to understand, that the only way to win a Grammy is to have the Membership of the Academy vote for you,”

“In order to be a member of the Academy you have to be a music professional working in the United States, for now. For now, it’s only in the United States of America, hopefully, we will grow then. Right now, if you are a working professional in the USA you can become a member of the Recording Academy

“Once you are a member of the Academy, all the music is submitted, the members listen to it and they evaluate it based on the quality of the art not the sales, not the streams not on the followers or how many fans… it is purely on the art.

“It’s purely on the opinion and as you all know it is very hard because it is subjective. There is no best song, best record it is just the opinion of the Membership in that particular year. That is how you win a Grammy and that is it.

“The voters vote, there is no committee, there is no journalist, no labels just music professionals voting for their peers, period,”

Why Tyla won

“Water” which drowned all the Nigerian artists is Tyla’s breakthrough single, and it has been quickly gaining popularity since its release in July 2023. The song is an Afrobeat tune with a catchy dance choreography that has been trending on social media.

Tyla’s ‘Water’ becomes Number 1 Afrobeats song in the U.S, ending Rema and Selena Gomez’s “Calm Down” historic 58-week on top of the chat.

Tyla’s achievement is even more impressive considering that she is a relatively new artist. She has only been releasing music for a few years, but she has already made a big impact on the Afrobeats scene. Tyla’s success is a result of her growing popularity of Afrobeats music in the United States.

No doubt, Tyla’s “Water” won on the strength of her US presence, not on ther African continent or any local popularity, sales, fans acclaim or streaming numbers. The shots were called in the US by US residents who seem to identify more with the South African.