Headies Founder Ayo Animashaun Calls Out Nigerian Artists Over Grammy Entries

• Ayo Animashaun has criticised Nigerian artists who submit their work to foreign award bodies but ignore the local music awards
• Animashaun said some musicians complain about not receiving Headies nominations despite failing to submit their entries for consideration
• Several Nigerian stars, including Davido, Ayra Starr, Tems, Asake and Burna Boy, submitted their works for consideration for the 2027 Grammy Awards

The founder of The Headies Awards, Ayo Animashaun, has challenged Nigerian musicians over what he described as their preference for foreign award bodies over local recognition.

Animashaun expressed his displeasure in a post on his Instagram Story, accusing some artists of proudly submitting their works to international awards while failing to enter The Headies.

Animashaun questions artists’ attitude to The Headies

In his post, the Headies founder lamented what he described as the different attitudes some Nigerian artists display towards local and international award organisers.

“Tom, D*ck and Harry will submit entries to foreign award bodies that don’t even care about them and proudly post about it. But these same people won’t submit their entries to the Headies, yet they’ll complain about not being nominated. Funny..” he wrote.

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Nigerian stars submit for 2027 Grammys

Animashaun’s criticism comes as several Nigerian musicians reportedly submitted their works for consideration for nominations at the 2027 Grammy Awards.

Artists who made submissions include Davido, Ayra Starr, Tems, Asake, Burna Boy, Rema and Victony, among others.

Meanwhile, the Headies organisers recently postponed the 18th edition of the ceremony, which was initially scheduled for October 23, 2026.

The event is now expected to hold on April 10 and 11, 2027, in Toronto, Canada.

Read Ayo Animashaun's post criticisng Nigerian artists here:

Reactions trail Ayo Animashaun's post

Legit.ng compiled the comments of social media users below:

@UncleSeun3r stated:

"This man make headies lost value the moment he allow politics to take over that award coz i could remember during 09 010 we dey always try make ourselves available to watch headies then but now no one give a about the award anymore.. kudos to olamide for challenging them den"

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@jennAnn1964 noted:

"Nobody cares about the headies bro I remember when Una Dey use that award make Shakara for burna boy now nobody send Una papa again life!!"

Cobhams Asuquo criticises the Grammy

Earlier, Legit.ng reported that Nigerian producer Cobhams Asuquo accused the Grammy Awards of exploiting Nigerian artistes and fans by boosting Los Angeles' economy through attendance, while withholding awards.

The music director, who worked on Davido's "5ive Alive" world tour, called for Nigerians to invest in homegrown awards like the Headies instead of chasing Grammy recognition.

Source: Legit.ng