Flaunt Weeekly
The Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr, has defended the nomination of US R&B star Chris Brown in the Best African Music Performance category, ahead of tonight’s Grammy Awards 2025 ceremony in Los Angeles.
The Grammy Awards introduced the special category last year as a dedicated space for African music, but just one year after its launch, the category is already proving controversial.
Best African Music Performance made its debut with South Africa’s Tyla winning for her hit Watera blend of South African amapiano and Afropop.
It was a move welcomed across the industry, especially by African artists.
However, when the nominations for this year’s awards were announced, they raised eyebrows, particularly the inclusion of US R&B star Chris Brown in the Best African Music Performance category, meaning he will now go head-to-head with African musicians for the award in that category.
The 35-year-old has been nominated for his chart-topping single, Sensational, which features Nigerian stars Davido and Lojay and fuses elements of Afrobeats.
However, the inclusion of Chris Brown’s artists in an African music category has only added fuel to an already heated debate over why the category is dominated by Nigerian artists at the 67th Grammys Awards.
Seven of the eight artists nominated for Best African Music Performance are Nigerian, with Chris Brown the only non-Nigerian/African on the list.
Defending Chris Brown’s nomination, CEO Mason Jr. says it wouldn’t be wise to exclude other artists who create music in genres other than their own.
“Music is about inclusivity. We don’t want to fence people out of genres. If we start deciding who can make a certain kind of music and who can’t, we lose the essence of creativity. Harvey told the BBC.
The music and film producer, who has been tapped to lead the Academy in 2021, added that this cross-pollination of genres is nothing new.
“We’ve seen it before with Latin, we’ve seen it with K-Pop, and now you’re starting to see it with Afrobeats and Amapiano. We want to honor all music [regardless of] where it comes from or who makes it. If it’s excellent, we want to celebrate it. Harvey added.
Nairobi News is now available on Telegram. For handpicked stories every day, subscribe to our channel today.
