As Grammy Week unfolds, African music is asserting itself not as a passing trend, but as a defining force in global pop culture.
From award recognition to sold-out arenas worldwide, African sounds are no longer on the margins of the industry they are reshaping its center.
That momentum will be on full display in Los Angeles at Pamoja, YouTube Music’s annual African music and culture celebration. The event reflects the collaborative, cross-border spirit behind the global rise of African music.
This year, Pamoja will honor nominees in the Recording Academy’s Best African Music Performance category and recognize Nigerian pioneer Fela Kuti with a Lifetime Achievement Award. The celebration will also spotlight the African diaspora and international collaborators who have helped amplify African sounds worldwide.
Digital platforms have played a central role in this expansion. According to YouTube, more than 70% of watch time for the platform’s Top 100 African artists comes from outside Africa, underscoring the genre’s growing international audience.
“YouTube is part of how fans everywhere discovered these artists in the early days,” said Tuma Basa, YouTube’s director of music culture. “A lot of the discovery happens organically. It’s borderless.”
That border less reach is reflected in both touring and collaboration. African artists are selling out arenas across Europe and North America, while global acts continue to draw massive audiences across the continent.
Basa cited Rema’s performance in India in 2024 as a pivotal moment in demonstrating just how expansive African music’s audience has become.
“Fans didn’t wait for radio or a traditional gatekeeper to tell them who to listen to,” he said. “They found the music themselves.”
Streaming figures across platforms reinforce this shift. In 2025, Burna Boy was Spotify’s most-streamed African artist.
By January 2026, Wizkid surpassed that milestone, becoming the first African artist to reach 10 billion streams. Nigerian artist CKay’s “Love Nwantiti” has also surpassed 1 billion streams, placing it among the most-consumed African songs ever.
On Apple Music, African music streams have grown four times faster than overall platform growth, with Wizkid again exceeding 10 billion global streams.
Industry leaders credit the African diaspora as a crucial driver of that reach.
“If African music is the fuel, the diaspora is the transmission,” Basa said. “It helps carry that energy to different parts of the world.”
Pamoja itself is intentionally informal, designed to prioritize authenticity over spectacle.
“For us, authenticity isn’t a curated aesthetic it’s the foundation,” said Addy Awofisayo, head of music for sub-Saharan Africa at YouTube.
“When you look at previous Pamoja events, the impact didn’t come from a script,” she added. “It came from people feeling seen and represented.”
Beyond celebration, organizers say the goal is lasting impact.
“With that many decision-makers in one room, the goal is to move past surface-level networking,” Awofisayo said. “We want collaborations, partnerships and long-term strategies to come out of it.”
This year’s Grammy Awards further reflect Africa’s growing presence, from the Best African Music Performance category, introduced in 2024, to Kuti’s posthumous honor. Still, Basa cautions against framing the moment as a sudden breakthrough.
“It’s not a beginning or a turning point,” he said. “It’s a continuation of music that has always existed and is finally being recognized at this level.
This is overdue recognition, not a trend.”
Looking ahead, industry leaders say African music’s future will be defined by diversity from Amapiano to African hip-hop, R&B, and pop beyond Afrobeats.
“We’re seeing African music move from influence to infrastructure,” Basa said. “That shift is already underway.”