GRAMMY’s "Best African Music Performance" Songs Generated 2.9 Billion Global Streams - "Water", "Rush" Command 72.4%

The recently concluded GRAMMY Awards marked the debut of the category for Best African Music Performance, won by Tyla for her smash hit, "Water". The introduction of this category underscores the growing popularity and influence of African music globally.

According to Luminate, the five nominees for Best African Music Performance, which included tracks like "Amapiano" by Asake & Olamide, "City Boys" by Burna Boy, "Unavailable" by Davido & Musa Keys, "Rush" by Ayra Starr, and the winning song "Water" by Tyla, collectively garnered about 523 million on-demand (Audio + Video) streams in the US and about 2.9 billion streams worldwide. Notably, "Water" and "Rush" alone contributed 2.1 billion to that total.

As reported in January, there is a notable increase in streaming share for top Afrobeats songs in Europe. The popularity of these GRAMMY-nominated tracks extends to various countries, including the UK, France, Germany, Netherlands, South Africa, and Australia. In addition, India and The Philippines have emerged as strong markets for Tyla and Ayra Starr.

In 2022, Afrobeats recorded about 3.3 billion streams in the US, which surged to 4.9 billion in 2023, marking an impressive 50% rise. The top 10 markets for Afrobeats in 2023 included New York, Los Angeles, Washington DC, Atlanta, Dallas, Chicago, Philadelphia, Houston, Boston, and Miami.