It’s time for African pop: ‘Calm Down’, new divas and unprecedented category at the Grammys show the strength of the style

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For the first time in history, the Grammys will have a category dedicated to African music, which is gaining more and more space on the charts with artists such as Rema, Burna Boy, Tyla and Ayra Starr. Three songs to understand the strength of African pop In 2024, for the first time in history, the Grammys will have a category dedicated to African music. This is just further proof of how pop coming from Africa is being increasingly talked about. But could African music gain even more prominence on the charts around the world in the coming years? In the video above and in the text below, g1 explains the strength of African pop. ‘Calm Down’, the megahit One of the biggest dance hits of recent years, “Calm Down” unites Nigerian rapper Rema, one of the song’s authors, and the soft and charming voice of Selena Gomez. This mega-hit released in 2022 proved that the Afrobeats style can win fans all over the world. The genre mixes more obvious styles such as R&B and rap with more traditional West African rhythms, such as: Kpanlogo, a kind of Ghanaian version of rock n’ roll from the 50s; Fuji, a Nigerian style sung in the Yurobá language and influenced by the music of Muslim celebrations; Ndombolo, a genre coming from Congo with strong percussion and rumba in its DNA, later giving rise to kuduro; Afrobeat (which is not the same thing as the current afrobeats), a Nigerian style that combines local rhythms and American jazz, with Fela Kuti as a big name. Tyla and Ayra Starr, the new pop stars South African singer Tyla Disclosure In addition to “Calm Down”, African pop also has a current hit, and it is from South African singer Tyla. “Water” reached the American top 10 of “Billboard” magazine after appearing on TikTok. It is an Amapiano style song, very popular in South Africa, driven by piano with influence from jazz and house music. REMEMBER THIS? The story behind ‘Waka Waka’, the biggest hit of the World Cup: Shakira ‘copied’ Cameroonian music There are other semi-hits coming from Africa, of course. “Last Last” is sung by Burna Boy, a Nigerian who has been active since 2010. The song mixes two languages: English and Yoruba. In terms of sound, it’s another Afrobeats song, with the arrangement built from a sample of “He Wasn’t Man Enough”, by American Toni Braxton. On the list of Grammy nominees for African music, Tyla and Burna Boy are joined by Ayrna Starr, another revelation of African pop, and two more experienced artists of Nigerian origins: Asake and Davido. The two and Burna Boy managed to sell out 20,000 tickets at the O2 Arena, in London, for their respective shows in the English capital. Nigerian singer Tems Disclosure In 2022, also Nigerian singer Tems, codename of singer Temilade Openiyi, appeared on the g1 betting list. This Afrobeats pop star’s name began to be talked about more after she sang on Drake’s album in 2021. She and the Canadian rapper performed a duet on “Fountains”. There are other African pop stars with a longer career (such as Tiwa Savage and Yemi Alade) and new arrivals that should gain more space soon (Uncle Waffles, Kamo Mphela). With so many talented artists and rhythms to be explored, the only certainty is that African pop will rise in the streaming rankings and appear even more on party playlists here. Nigerian singer Ayra Starr Disclosure

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