Nigeria’s Minister of Art, Culture, and Creative Economy, Hannatu Musawa has confirmed that they are in talks with the organisers of the American Grammy Awards to establish an African version of the prestigious award show.
Musawa made this confirmation, against the backdrop of some industry players who have criticized the move, expressing fear it could jeopardise the hard-earned progress and unique cultural identity of African music.
In a chat with our reporter in Lagos, on Tuesday, the minister stated that Nigeria, being the home of Afrobeats, must be counted among the founding members of African Grammys.
She mentioned countries such as Rwanda, Kenya and South Africa as being at the fore-front, championing the move to establish an African version of Grammys.
However, stakeholders in the music industry recently expressed concerns, calling on President Bola Tinubu to halt the partnership between the Nigerian government, and the American Grammy Awards, a move they said could undermine the progress recorded in the country’s music industry over the past two decades.
“This is a clear case of misplaced priorities. It’s shocking how the minister could endorse the adoption of an award by an entity that doesn’t understand our culture and heritage. It reeks of neo-colonialism, and many of us in the industry see it as a perpetuation of a culture of waste that could harm our economy.
“Why bring in an American entity when we have well-established music award institutions that have tirelessly celebrated and honoured our music icons in an authentic African manner, gaining global acceptance in the process? Instead of supporting homegrown initiatives like the Headies, All African Music Awards, AFRIMA, Soundcity MVP Awards, and Trace Awards, among others, the minister has opted to prioritize foreign involvement. This is unacceptable and should be condemned by all those who love this country and the burgeoning creative industry.
“There is a movement within the music industry to reject this vexatious initiative by Musawa and we are calling on President Tinubu to prevail on the minister to bury this idea forthwith,” stakeholders fumed.