Nigerian music is once again staking a claim at the Grammy Awards, with Asake, Tems and veteran Afrobeat torchbearer Seun Kuti all confirmed among the artists submitting work for consideration at the 2027 ceremony. First-round voting for the Recording Academy opens Monday, October 12, and runs through October 22, with nominations due to be announced November 16 and the show itself set for February 7, 2027, in Los Angeles.

Asake’s camp has been the most aggressive, submitting four separate works across eight category placements, according to an announcement from his label, Giran Republik, on October 8. His album “M$NEY” has been entered for both Album of the Year and Best Global Music Album, while the single “Gratitude” is up for Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best African Music Performance. His Wizkid collaboration “Jogodo” and the DJ Snake-produced “Worship” round out his submissions, the latter entered in Best Dance Pop Recording. Asake has twice been nominated in Best African Music Performance without a win — for “Amapiano” with Olamide in 2024 and “MMS” with Wizkid in 2025 — making this his widest push yet for Grammy recognition.

Tems, long regarded as one of Nigeria’s most decorated Grammy performers, has reportedly submitted her album “Love Is a Kingdom” across Album of the Year, Best Global Music Album, Best Album Cover and Best Engineered Album. Individual songs including “What You Need,” the Dave collaboration “Raindance,” and “Bunce Road Blues” with J. Cole and Future are also in the running, the latter eyeing Best Melodic Rap Performance. Tems already holds a Grammy win for her songwriting on Future’s “Wait for U” and took home Best African Music Performance in 2025 for “Love Me JeJe,” alongside a nomination that year for “Born in the Wild.”

Seun Kuti, son of Afrobeat pioneer Fela Kuti, has entered two songs in Best African Music Performance: “Na Dem,” his collaboration with Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello, and “Problems” with Jamaican artist Kabaka Pyramid, produced by Femi Koleoso. Of the “Na Dem” partnership, which grew out of a live performance before being recorded in the studio, Kuti said he pursued Morello specifically because “he represents the ultimate expression of protest music,” adding, “beyond any musical genre, we need artists like him.” The track carries on his father’s tradition of confronting corruption and abuse of power through music. Kuti was previously nominated in 2019 for “Black Times” with Egypt 80 in Best World Music Album but has yet to win a Grammy.

Submissions now move into a screening process to confirm eligibility and category placement before voting begins. None of the three Nigerian acts has secured a nomination yet — entry into the race is only the first step — but their combined presence across global, African, dance, rap and R&B categories underscores how far Afrobeats and its related sounds have pushed into the Recording Academy’s mainstream categories, not just the African Music Performance field created for the genre in 2024. With nominations roughly five weeks away, Nigerian music fans have a long wait before finding out how many of these entries make the final cut.

Sources: Within Nigeria, The Native, Forbes