Costa Titch, Dadju, Didi B, SoolKing, and Wegz Lead AFRIMA 2022 Nominees

The African Union (AU) in conjunction with the International Committee of All Africa Music Awards (AFRIMA) has unveiled the list of nominees for the 2022 edition of the award show which is slated to take place from the 8th to the 11th of December.

South African hip-hop sensation, Costa Titch leads this year’s nominations with six nods thanks to his 2021 hit single “Big Flexa.” He is up for top honors like “Song of the Year” and “Breakout Artiste of the Year.” Also with six nominations is Congolese R&B singer, Dadju. Among other honors, he is nominated for “Artiste of the Year” and “Best Male in Central Africa.”

The third highest nominations go to Ivorian rapper, Didi B, Algerian singer SoolKing, and Egyptian rapper, Wegz with five nominations each.

Nigerian global superstars, Burna Boy, Fireboy DML, Kizz Daniel, and Tiwa Savage all have four nominations under their belt.

Other Nigerian acts such as Ckay, Oxlade, Ruger, Asake, Lojay, Sarz, DJ Spinall, and Joeboy are nominated in various other categories as well.

A record-breaking total of 9,076 entries were submitted to the AFRIMA international jury for deliberation, but only 382 entries were selected and nominated from the five regions of Africa. The diaspora was not excluded as international acts like Faouzia and Chris Brown made the nominee cut. Only entries that were submitted within the time frame of 20 August 2021 to 5 August 2022 were considered for nomination.

Topping the leaderboard on a regional basis this year is the Western African region with 134 nominations, representing 35%; the Eastern African region comes in second place with 69 nominations, representing 18%; not too far behind is the Southern African region with 68 nominations, representing 17.8%. Fourth place goes to Central Africa with 52 nominations, representing 13.6%, and finally, the Northern African region comes in fifth with 49 nominations, representing 12.8%.

The Global music region, which consists of music from the diaspora and non-Africans also makes the list with 10 nominations, representing 2.6%.

Commenting on the nominations list, Adam Tiran, an AFRIMA jury member representing the Southern African region said, “The sheer breadth of music from all over the continent that we considered at the AFRIMA adjudication, for this year’s awards is mind-blowing. It’s really encouraging to see so many African superstars on the list, as well as other rising stars who have had an amazing year, and finally, a lot of brand-new music discoveries. The future is bright for the continent!”.

The AFRIMA award ceremony promises to be filled with music, recognition of African talents, and the promotion of the African culture and creative industry. It is scheduled to commence with the welcome soiree, followed by the AFRIMA Music Village, the host city tour, the Africa Music Business Summit, and the exclusive nominees’ party. The event will be concluded with the live broadcast of the award ceremony in over 84 countries around the world. There is no word yet on the country that would host this year’s event, but a special announcement will be made on the 30th of September concerning this.

The voting process is fan-based, and it will commence on the 29 September at 12 pm CAT. Members of the public can vote for their favorite acts via the official website here. Voting closes at 12 pm CAT on the 10 December.

View the full list of nominees here.

A 13-member panel of African music experts and practitioners make up the AFRIMA jury and they are chosen from the five regions of Africa and the diaspora.