Mp3bullet.ng presents Nigerian artists who won Best African Act at the MTV Europe Music Awards (EMA).
Check out the list of Nigerian Artists who have been recipients of the MTV Europe Music Awards (EMA)
The MTV Europe Music Awards honour pop culture’s artists and music. Every year, the Europe Music Awards are held in a new country.
Since 2005, it has offered a Best African Act category to honour the best and most successful crossover African artist of the previous year.
Since its inception, the category has been won seven times by Nigerian musicians. But who are these Nigerian artists, and when did they receive these honours? Take a look at the list below;
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2Baba
Formerly known as 2Face Idibia, 2Baba trailblazing solo debut album, Face2Face, was released in 2005, and to date, it is one of the best solo debut albums in Nigerian music since 1999.
The song ‘African Queen‘ off the project became so popular that it was featured in the American film Phat Girls.
He was certainly Africa’s MVP when he earned the honour, with worldwide and local plaudits to match. He became the first Nigerian artist to win the prestigious category.
He defeated Kaysha, Kleptomaniax, 02, and Zamajobe to win the award.
D’banj
D’Banj’s sophomore album, Rundown, was released in 2006 and featured the chart-topping single “Why Me.”
Alongside Don Jazzy’s sonic revolution, which he fused with his talent, D’banj shook the entire African soundscape. He wasn’t just a performer; he was a showman as well.
He won his first EMA in 2007. Nobody was surprised when he won this award over Chameleone, Hip-hop Pantsula, Jua Cali, Samini, and Big Pin.
However that wasn’t the last time as in 2012 he bagged the award again after he changed the game with Nigeria’s first crossover pop record of the modern era, ‘Oliver Twist‘ months before.
He beat Camp Mulla, Mi Casa, Sarkodie and Wizkid to the award.
Davido
Davido signed a deal with Sony Music via Columbia Records in 2016 and embarked on his first worldwide tour, which culminated in hit singles like “Fans Mi” featuring Meek Mill, “Coolest Kid In Africa” featuring Nasty C, “How Long” starring Tinashe, and “Pere” featuring Young Thug and Rae Sremmurd.
It resulted in the Son of Mercy EP, which Davido has admitted to despising. Nonetheless, the DMW Label boss received some attention as a result of it.
He had one of the most successful one-year runs in current Nigerian music in 2017, with four hit singles. ‘Fall‘ and ‘IF‘ have since received Gold certification in the United States.
With his achievements, he defeated Babes Wodumo, C4 Pedro, Nasty C, Nyashinki, and Wizkid to win the MTV EMA award in 2017.
Tiwa Savage
Tiwa Savage and her ex-husband, Tunji Balogun, had a publicized divorce battle in 2017. Sugarcane EP was her comeback, and it was one of the most spectacular comebacks in contemporary Nigerian music. She then released the single ‘Get It,’ which featured Omarion.
In 2018, Savage headlined her first sold-out event at London’s 02 Arena and was named on Vogue’s World 100.
That same year, she gained her first MTV EMA making her the first and only solo female winner of the award, beating out Davido, Distruction Boyz, Fally Ipupa, Nyashinski, and Shekinah.
Burna Boy
In 2019, Burna Boy has successfully conquered his tribulations and became Africa’s MVP, serving as the poster boy for the ‘Afrobeats to the World’ conversation.
Later that year, he released African Giant, a potential classic, which earned him his first Grammy nomination. He had previously released Outside, which had singles such as ‘Ye,’ ‘Heaven’s Gate’, ‘Giddem’, ‘Devil in Californa.’
He received four honours at the Soundcity MVP in January of that year, the BET Best International Act Award in June, and was featured on Beyonce’s Lion King: The Gift with his own song.
After that, he embarked on his spectacular African Giant Tour, which included a performance at Coachella following an infamous social media spat, and he triumphed in every way.
He also became the fifth Nigerian artist to win an MTV EMA in the Best African Act category.
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Wizkid
In 2016, Wizkid achieved international recognition following his collaboration with Drake on the hit single “One Dance“, which reached number-one on the US Billboard Hot 100, and topped the charts in 14 additional countries.
The song broke multiple records, making Wizkid the first Afrobeats artist to appear in the Guinness World Records.
That same year he won his first MTV EMA beating out Black Coffee, Cassper Nyovest, Olamide and Ali Kiba.
Following a postponement due to the #EndSARS demonstrations in 2020, Wizkid released Made In Lagos to lukewarm acclaim, which has since evolved into much-needed praise. He has not only made one of the best comebacks in Nigerian music history, but he has also broken records.
He has since produced a Billboard Hot 100 top ten single, charted in multiple countries across the world, won BET and MOBO awards, received six Soul Train Award nominations, been a Grammy season favourite, headlined his first American tour to acclaim, and become a global superstar.
Winning his second MTV EMA in 2021 was just another bonus in his heavy bag of achievements.