In a recent interview with The Public Republic, Grammy-nominated Afrobeat musician Seun Kuti has expressed frustration over what he perceives as the misattribution of accomplishments within the Nigerian music industry, particularly concerning Burna Boy.
Reflecting on his career, Kuti mentioned that his album “Black Times” was nominated for Best World Music Album years ago, but it went unrecognized by African award organizers.
Kuti highlighted instances where his own and his family’s achievements have been overshadowed or ignored by the media.
Kuti noted that before Burna Boy’s Grammy nomination for Best World Music Album with “African Giant,” his elder brother, Femi Kuti, had already received multiple nominations in the same category.
Additionally, Kuti pointed out that Burna Boy was widely celebrated as the first Nigerian artist to perform at Coachella in 2020, despite Kuti himself having performed at the festival in 2012.
He also shared his disappointment over not being acknowledged by Nigerian media for his contributions to Janelle Monae’s “Age of Pleasure,” which earned a Grammy nomination for Album of the Year in 2024.
“My brother [Femi Kuti] has been nominated at the Grammys multiple times. They’ve nominated me; I was also nominated in the last edition. It was only my name that they [Nigerian media] didn’t mention among the Nigerian artists nominated for the 66th Grammys. That’s what they do every time as if I’m from Togo. That’s how they said Burna Boy was the first Nigerian artiste to play in Coachella in 2020, where I played in 2012 as if I were from Togo,” Kuti lamented.
Kuti’s remarks exhibit his ongoing struggle for recognition and accurate representation within the Nigerian music scene, as he continues to advocate for the acknowledgment of his and his family’s contributions to the industry.
