Grammy Academy CEO Considering Adding Afrobeats Category

Grammy Academy CEO Harvey Manson has revealed that the Academy is considering adding an Afrobeats category to its prestigious award.

While speaking to the press at the Global Citizens concert in Ghana, Manson revealed that the academy has kicked off the first process in the long road to adding an Afrobeats category to the Grammys.

According to him, the academy had a meeting with Afrobeats creatives that includes artists, producers, songwriters, and executives where they talked about Afrobeats and its many genres.

He further revealed that the members of the academy will have to submit a proposal for the addition of a new category before deliberations will kick off.

However, the listening session with the Afrobeats leaders is the first step.

The addition of an Afrobeats category to the Grammys will mean that songs that fall under its subgenre will be eligible for nomination.

While the Afrobeats is primarily a description of Nigerian and Ghanaian mainstream music, the West has often muddled it up with any sound coming from Saharan Africa.

The implication is that South African genres such as House, Amapiano, and Kwaito might be considered Afrobeats.

It will be up to the Academy to adequately identify the essential elements that make a song Afrobeats as doing this will be the first step in truly awarding the right songs irrespective of where it's made.