List of Nigerian Grammy Award Winners 

This article will mention the Nigerians who have won a Grammy Award. We would indicate the year in which they won the award, the category in which they won, and their contributions to the work of art.

List of Nigerian Grammy Award Winners 

Read on. 

 The list of Nigerian Grammy Award winners would be discussed below: 

  • Tems 

Tems, whose real name is Temilade Openiyi, currently holds the Grammy Award for Best Melodic Rap Performance, alongside Future and Drake, for her contribution to the RnB song “Wait for U”. The trio received the award on February 5th, 2023 during the 65th Annual Grammy Award that was held at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.

  • Wizkid 

Beyonce’s song, “Brown Skin Girl” which had vocal contributions from Wizkid, Saint Jhn and Blue Ivy Carter was the winner of the 2021 Grammy Award category for Best Music Video. Beyonce and the guest artists, including Wizkid received the Grammy Award at the Los Angeles Convention Center, Los Angeles, on March 14th, 2021.

  • Jenn Nkiru 

Jenn Nkiru is a Nigerian-British artist and director whose contribution to directing Beyonce’s “Brown Skin Girl” earned her the Grammy Award for Best Music Video at the 63rd Annual Grammy Award ceremony. She co-directed the music video for “Brown Skin Girl” with Beyonce. 

  • Burna Boy 

Damini Ogulu, known by the stage name Burna Boy, is another Nigerian that has won the Grammy Awards. At the 63rd Annual Grammy Award ceremony held on March 14, 2021, Burna Boy’s fifth studio album, Twice as Tall, whose executive producers were Diddy and his mother, Bose Ogulu, won the Best World Music Album category. 

  • Cynthia Erivo 

Cynthia Erivo was born to Nigerian parents in Stockwell, South London. By her parents’ nationality, she’s Nigerian. She is another Nigerian that has won a Grammy Award. In 2017, she, alongside Danielle Brooks and Jennifer Hudson, who were principal soloists for The Color Purple (2015 Broadway Cast), won the Grammy Award for Best Musical Theatre Album. Cynthia Erivo and the other principal soloists were awarded the Best Musical Theater Album for their quality musical theater cast recording in The Color Purple. 

  • Sade Adu 

Sade Adu, whose real name is Helen Folashade Adu, is the first woman or girl to ever win a Grammy Award. Born in Ibadan and brought up in the United Kingdom, Sade Adu grew to become one of the most decorated artists in the UK. She boasts 8 Grammy Awards nominations of which she’s won four. 

In 1986, she won the category of Best New Artist at the 28th Annual Grammy Award ceremony. In 1994, she won Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group With Vocals in the 36th Annual Grammy Award ceremony for her contribution to the RnB song “No Ordinary Love”. She also won the Best Pop Vocal Album category for her album, Lovers Rock, at the 44th Annual Grammy Award ceremony, in 2002. Her latest Grammy Award was the R&B Performance By A Duo or Group With Vocals for her contribution to ” Soldier of Love” which she won in 2011.

  • Lekan Babalola 

  • Sikiru Adepoju 

Sikiru Adepoju, a percussionist and recording artist, is another Nigerian to win a Grammy Award. His first Grammy Award was in 1991, for his contribution to Mickey Hart’s Planet Drum album. The Planet Drum album won the first-ever Grammy Award for Best World Music Album. He contributed to several tracks of the album, such as “Udu Chant”, “Island Groove”, and “Bones”. 

Sikiru Adepoju, 18 years after picking up his first Grammy Award for his contribution to Mickey Hart’s Planet Drum album, won another Grammy Award for his contribution to another of Mickey Hart’s albums known as Global Drum Project. Global Drum Project won the 2009 Grammy Award for the Best Contemporary World Music Album category. 

  • Babatunde Olatunji 

Babatunde Olatunji received a Grammy Award for his contribution to Mickey Hart’s Planet Drum album which featured 13 songs and 8 artists, aside from Mickey Hart. The Planet Drum album won the first Grammy Award for Best World Music Album. Some of the tracks of the album which he was part of include “Evening Samba”, “Bones”, ” The Hunt” and “Dance of the Hunter’s Fire”, to name a few. 

  • Seal 

Seal, whose name is Henry Olumide Adeola Samuel, has his Nigerian origin traced to his mother, Adebisi Ogundeji. He has won four Grammy Awards, three of which were won in 1996 for his song, ” Kiss from a Rose”. The aforementioned song earned him the following Grammy Awards: Record of the Year; Song of the Year; and Best Male Pop Vocal Performance. In 2011, Seal won his fourth Grammy award for the song “Imagine” in the Best Collaboration With Vocals category. 

  • Chamillionaire 

Chamillionaire is an American born to a Nigerian-born father and an African-American mother. His real name is Hakeem Temidayo Seriki. In 2007, “Ridin”, a single off his The Sound of Revenge album, which featured Krayzie Bone of Bone Thugs-n-Harmony, won the Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group at the annual Grammy Award ceremony of 2007. 

  • Kevin Oluwole Olusola

Kevin Olusola is popularly known as the beatboxer for the a capella group called Pentatonix. As a group, Pentatonix has received nominations for the Grammy Awards, winning two. The first Grammy Award the Group won was on February 8th, 2015, when their medley of songs by Daft Punk, ” Daft Punk” won the Best Arrangement Instrumental or A Capella category. The next year, another medley, “Dance of a Sugar” won the Best Arrangement Instrumental or A Capella category. 

  • Olalekan Babalola 

Lekan Babalola is a Nigerian percussionist whose contributions to several albums have earned him two Grammy Awards. His first Grammy Award was for his contribution as a percussionist in Ali Farka Touré and Tounami Diabate’s album titled In the Heart of the Moon, which was recorded in 2005. The album went on to win the 2006 Grammy Award for Best Traditional World Album. Olalekan contributed his skills as a percussionist in the following tracks: Monsieur le Maire de Niafunké and Gomni. 

Lekan Babalola also won another Grammy Award in 2009 for his contribution as a percussionist on Cassandra Wilson’s Loverly album. Loverly won the Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Album in 2008. 

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