Connect with us

Entertainment/Arts/Culture

Ghanaian Soul Singer, Baaba J Emerges Spotify’s “EQUAL Africa Artiste” for April

Published

on

Share

Spotify, a global online streaming platform has announced Ghanaian singer, Baaba J as its EQUAL Africa artiste for the month of April.

Phiona Okumu, Spotify’s Head of Music for Sub-Saharan Africa disclosed this in a statement on Friday, in Lagos.

Okumu said Baaba J was a rising Ghanaian star whose unique blend of Soul, Pop, Rap, and Alté created an innovative sound that pushed boundaries and challenged traditional music genres.

She said her music featured lyrics in English, Ga, and Pidgin that were precise and poetic.

” For April, music streaming platform, Spotify has recognised Baaba J’s talent by naming her the Spotify EQUAL Africa artiste for April.

” EQUAL is Spotify’s programme that seeks to spotlight and amplify the voices of African female artistes, breaking down barriers and making waves in music.

” Through our collaboration with diverse and talented artistes like Baaba J, we are dedicated to amplifying underrepresented voices and breaking down barriers in the music industry.

” We hope that by shining a light on their unique perspectives and experiences, we can inspire a new generation of creators and listeners alike,” she said.

Okumu noted that Baaba J’s lyrics were sprawling and innovative, touching on themes of love, heartache, and the desire to belong.

According to her, Baaba fearlessly mixes piercing personal reflections with metaphors, singing in Ga and Pidgin to emphasise her point that one has to constantly march to the beat of their own drum.

” Her passion for music began as an escape from the monotony of everyday life, and it has evolved into a powerful force connecting her with music lovers.

” Her remarkable 2020 five-track ep Lumumba Street unearthed love, grief, heartache and the desire to belong amid a burning patchwork of Soul, Pop, Rap, and Alte.

” The project’s lead single, Tomboy, whose video she co-directed, is a powerful anthem of self-confidence and empowerment.

” Baaba J has delivered stellar performances on platforms such as the Accra Indie Film Festival, The Crusade, and The MiM Life Concert.

” She was also part of the Ghanaian creatives who met the Vice President of the United States of America, Kamala Harris during her visit to Ghana at the Vibrate Space,” she said.

In her response, Baaba J said “I’m looking to a time in the near future where there would be more avenues and safe spaces for women to record music and begin their music journeys.

” More women producers, women-owned studios, and women transforming the music scene”. (NAN)

Entertainment/Arts/Culture

2025 Grammy: Nigeria Tops Nomination for Best African Music Performance Category

Published

on

Share

Nigerian music artistes have dominated nomination for the Best African Music Performance category of the 67th Grammy Awards.

The Recording Academy announced the nominations on Friday.

This year, Nigeria dominates the category , including returning contenders Burna Boy and Asake, the former earning a nod for his hit song,‘Higher’.

while the latter is for his collaboration with Wizkid,”MMS”.

Davido also earn his second nod in the category for his contribution to Chris Brown’s “Sensational,” with Lojay picking up his first Grammy nomination for the same song.

Yemi Alade earns her first solo nod for her hit “Tomorrow”,while Tems’“Love Me Jeje” also receives a nod for for Best African Music Performance.

Notably, Tems is the only African artiste with three nominations across the global music categories; as her debut album, “Born in the Wild” is up for Best Global Music Album and Best R&B song for “Burning”.

Young music sensation Rema.is nominated in the Best Global Music Album category for his sophomore album, “HEIS”.

Other Nigerian stars nominated for the Grammys include Jordan Adetunji known for his viral “Kelani,” and his ‘Bloody Civilian’ also earns nomination for the ‘Best Reggae Album’ category on the Bob Marley’s ‘One Love’ soundtrack.

This year’s nomination marks Burna Boy’s sixth consecutive Grammy nomination, making him a Nigerian artiste with highest nomination so far.

Since Burna Boy’s first nomination for Best Global Music Album at the 2020 Grammys, and his win in 2021 for “Twice as Tall”, there has been an increased representation of African music on the global stage.

On the global scene, Beyoncé leads the Grammy pack with 11 nominations for her genre-crossing album Cowboy Carter, competing across categories including record, song, and album of the year, along with entries in pop, rap, country, and Americana.

Other leading nominees include Charli XCX, Billie Eilish, Kendrick Lamar, and Post Malone, each with seven nominations, while Taylor Swift, Chappell Roan, and Sabrina Carpenter follow with six nominations each.

The 67th Grammy awards ceremony is scheduled to hold on February 2, 2025 at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles United States. (NAN)

Continue Reading

Entertainment/Arts/Culture

Burna Boy Announces Release of New Album

Published

on

Share

Grammy-winning Nigerian Singer Damini Ogulu, popularly known as Burna Boy, has hinted the release of a new album.The “Twice As Tall” crooner disclosed this in a post on his X (formerly Twitter) handle on Monday.He wrote: “Album dropping 12AM.”According to the Afrobeat superstar, the new album will be dropping on July 30.

The announcement came after his recent celebration of the fifth anniversary of his Grammy nominated 2019 album “African Giant”,which he marked with a concert at the kolo Camden, United Kingdom.
The multiple award-winning artiste has continued to make headlines for being atthe forefront of exporting Nigerian music with his award-winning albums and historic sold-out concertsIn 2019, he won the Best International Act at the BET Awards, and was named an Apple Music Up Next artist.
He also released his fourth studio album, African Giant, which went on to win Album of the Year at the All Africa Music Awards.The album was nominated for Best World Music Album at the 62nd Annual Grammy Awards and he clinched the African Artistof the Year at the 2020 Ghana Music Awards.Burna Boy released his fifth studio album, ‘Twice as Tall’, in August 2020, which fetched him the Best World Music Album atthe 63rd Annual Grammy Awards.His sixth studio album Love Damini was released in 2022 and became the highest debut of a Nigerian album on the Billboard200 chart.Love Damini also became the highest-charting African album in France, the Netherlands and the UK.In October of same year, Burna Boy was awarded the Member of the Order of the Federal Republic plaque for his achievementsin music.In 2023, Rolling Stone ranked him number 197 on its list of the 200 greatest singers of all time and he won his fourthBest International Act at the BET Awards in 2023, among others.He made history again when his his 7th album, ‘I Told Them’ released in October 2023, earned him nominationsfor the 2024 Grammys, which became his fourth consecutive album to be nominated for the Grammys.(NAN)

Continue Reading

Entertainment/Arts/Culture

N4.5bn for one Song, Social Media Reacts to Rema’s Unprecedented Deal

Published

on

Share

The news of Rema’s record-breaking performance fee at Anant Ambani’s wedding has sent shockwaves across social media, with many users hailing music as a lucrative career path.

The Nigerian Afrobeats sensation reportedly pocketed a whopping N4.5 billion (three million dollars) for performing just one of hit songs, ‘Calm Down’, at the high-profile event, leaving many in awe.

Rema performed at the wedding of Asia’s richest man, Mukesh Ambani’s son, Anant Ambani, and daughter of pharma tycoons, Viren and Shaila Merchant, Radhika Merchant.

The event held on Friday at the Jio World Centre in Bandra Kurla Centre (BKC) in Mumbai.

Canadian singer, Justin Bieber, was also paid 10 million dollars for his performance at the event, according to reports.

Pop star, Rihanna, also performed at the event for an undisclosed fee.

Social media platforms are buzzing with excitement as aspiring musicians and music enthusiasts alike are drawing inspiration from Rema’s achievement.

The news has also sparked a renewed interest in the music industry, with many youths seeing Rema’s success as a motivation to pursue their own careers.

@Solomon_King says on X, “Hold up, let us get this straight, Rema just bagged a whopping N4.5 billion ($3 million) for singing one song at some rich kid’s wedding?!

“One song? We’re talking about a sum that could solve Nigeria’s economic problems, okay, maybe that’s an exaggeration, but you get the point.

“Rema just made more money than I’ll see in a lifetime and I’m still struggling to pay my rent.

“I need to start singing.”

@OlamideAngel said, “I’m quitting my job to become a musician, or maybe just a wedding singer.

“We’re dying over here! Meanwhile, Rema’s just over here living his best life and we’re not hating. In fact, we’re low-key inspired to step up our music game.

“On a more serious note, this achievement is a testament to Rema’s hard work and talent. We’re proud to see African artistes making waves and getting the recognition they deserve.”

@Perryblack, an X user, said, “Back then y’all mocked Rema for sounding “Indian” when he broke out. Now he was paid $3m to perform a song at Anant-Radhika’s wedding in India.

“Trust your music, Trust the process. Maybe I will go with Portable that said music money is bigger and better than football money.

“We thought Rema was goofing when he said he’s the future. He said he’s the next wizkid but we are not taking him seriously. Big ups boy.”

According to @blacktribemusic, “ Only this Rema’s song alone has made him one of the biggest artistes in Africa. Bigger than the top guys una dey reason self.

“Rema is too big to be underrated by Nigerians, he’s just 22 but making more money.

“Another day to remind y’all that music money is longer than football own.”

On the contrary, @cassandra mentioned that the billionaire should have  used the money to feed all the poor Indian citizens.

“That country dey suffer, why can’t he donate this money to the poor. Isn’t India one of the poorest countries in the world?

“I swear the billionaires don’t think of the poor chaii!

“Just $1k is enough for like 1 million people and
they will appreciate it and pray for you, it is more than all this show off,” she said.

Also, @UcheMark said,  “They all belong to the same cult. Even from the beginning of Rema’s career, we can already recognise his affiliation with India (voodoo).

“Also, his recent use of devilish symbols and colours is enough evidence. Birds of a feather.”

@chocolatechic said, “I will never be poor.” (NAN)

Continue Reading

Read Our ePaper

Top Stories

NEWS9 hours ago

Yuletide: Bode George Urges Tinubu to Reduce Petrol Price

ShareChief Bode George, a former Deputy National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has urged President Bola Tinubu to...

NEWS9 hours ago

Tinubu Set for Groundbreaking of Renewed Hope City in Lagos 

Share President Bola Tinubu, is set to perform the  groundbreaking of 2,000 housing units of the Renewed Hope City in...

NEWS9 hours ago

Gov. Alia Presents N550.1bn as 2025 Budget Estimate to Benue Assembly 

ShareGov. Hyacinth Alia on Wednesday presented the sum of N550.1bn as the 2025 appropriation bill to the Benue State House...

NEWS9 hours ago

Tax Bills: NASS will not Betray the Trust of Nigerians, says Akpabio

Share The President of the Senate, Sen. Godswill Akpabio, says the National Assembly will prioritise the interest of all Nigerians...

NEWS9 hours ago

Alia Has Demonstrated Capacity, Courage to Entrench Good Governance—Speaker 

Share The Speaker, Benue Assembly, Mr Hyacinth Dajo, has said that Gov. Hyacinth Alia has so far demonstrated capacity, courage,...

Economy9 hours ago

Investors Gain N183bn on NGX

Share The Nigerian Exchange Ltd. (NGX) continued its bullish trend on Wednesday, gaining N183 billion. Accordingly, the market capitalisation, which...

NEWS9 hours ago

Energy, Solid Minerals Top Priority, Tinubu Tells German Businessmen

Share President Bola Tinubu, on Wednesday, assured the German government and businessmen of Nigeria’s preparedness to expand frontiers for investors...

NEWS9 hours ago

Nigerian Who Wrote WASSCE 17 Times Bags Distinction from London School 

Share Dr Emmanuel Ahmadu, a Nigerian who wrote the West Africa School Senior Certificate Education 17 times, has earned a...

POLITICS9 hours ago

INEC Staff Welfare Association Warns Members Against Manipulating Election Results

Share The Abia Chapter of the INEC Staff Welfare Association (ISWA) has warned its members to uphold the integrity of...

NEWS10 hours ago

Bill for Compulsory Counselling, Training of Convicts Scales 2nd Reading

ShareA bill to amend the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000, has successfully passed its second reading in...

Copyright © 2021 Daily Asset Limited | Powered by ObajeSoft Inc