The prestigious accolade, celebrating unique and local expressions in African music, honoured Tyla’s global chart-topper, “Water”, propelling her to Grammy glory and overshadowing the likes of Davido, Burna Boy, Asake, Olamide, and Ayra Starr.
By Emmanuel Okoro
South Africa’s breakout star, Tyla, in a stunning turn of events, emerged victorious in the inaugural Best African Music Performance at the 66th Grammy Awards which was held recently at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.
The prestigious accolade, celebrating unique and local expressions in African music, honoured Tyla’s global chart-topper, “Water”, propelling her to Grammy glory and overshadowing the likes of Davido, Burna Boy, Asake, Olamide, and Ayra Starr.
However, the night brought surprises for West African music enthusiasts, as both Burna Boy and Davido faced defeats in other categories. They were outshone in the Best Global Music Performance and Best Global Music Album categories, which were claimed by Béla Fleck, Edgar Meyer, Rakesh Chaurasia & Zakir Hussain’s “Pashto” and the fusion band, Shakti’s This Moment, respectively.
Burna Boy’s hit track, “Sittin’ on Top of the World” featuring 21 Savage also did not clinch the Best Melodic Rap Performance, losing to American rapper Lil Durk’s “All My Life” featuring J. Cole. However, the night saw the African Giant delivering a stellar performance of songs from his album, I Told Them…, together with Brandy and 21 Savage.
The award ceremony also showcased victories for other artistes, with Victoria Monét sweeping multiple awards, including Best New Artiste, Best R&B Album, and Best Engineered Album–Non-Classical. While Miley Cyrus took home the Record of the Year for her single, “Flowers”, Billie Eilish’s “What Was I Made For?” won the Song of the Year and Best Song Written for Visual Media gramophones.
See the full winners list here.