The Recording Academy, organisers of the Grammy Awards, has come under intense criticism on social media for describing Wizkid as an “up-and-coming artiste”.
On Friday evening, the organisers of the prestigious awards took to its Instastories to list out a plethora of black singers who “everyone should have on their radar.”
Wizkid and Rema were the Nigerian music heavyweights who made the series of posts.
“Who is an up-and-coming Black artist everyone should have on their radar?” the caption of the posts read.
The now-deleted post for Wizkid, however, attracted a chorus of condemnation among Nigerians on social media platforms.
“Did Grammy just called our boy Wizkid an Up and coming artist!! This is what u get when u are always being Carried by other acts,” a user wrote.
Another user added: “Forget stanship this is actually disrespectful considering Wizkid is a top three afrobeats artiste.”
“How dem go call our own wizkid upcoming artist? Grammy must perform sacrifice…7 cow 7 cowries 7 white dove and seven virgin white goat,” Samklef, the Nigerian singer, wrote.
Here are what some Nigerians had to say:
The Grammys calling Wizkid an upcoming Artiste is a travesty. How can you call someone with over 50 million career sales and 146 awards an upcoming Artiste?
There’s no upcoming Artiste in the world with such achievements.
—World Publicist (@IsimaOdeh) June 17, 2023
We have given Grammy so much relevance to our music to the extent that they could ignorantly disrespect Wizkid with an ‘upcoming black artist’ tag. Shameful. pic.twitter.com/BcXusxM36d
—Tuchel of Calabar ⭐⭐???? (@Officially_Kriz) June 17, 2023
You can call Rema upcoming artiste but Wizkid? That’s disrespectful from Grammy sha
—⚡Oba Of Japan⚡ (@teejano) June 17, 2023
How dem go call our own wizkid upcoming artist? Grammy must perform sacrifice…7 cow 7 cowries 7 white dove and seven virgin white goat.
—EVERYTHING SAMKLEF ? (@SAMKLEF) June 17, 2023
Forget stanship this is actually disrespectful considering wizkid is a top three afrobeats artiste
—dooniebeater (@Heisdio25) June 17, 2023
Lol Grammys deleted that q&a of wiz.
They didn’t know people don’t joke with anything Wizkid lmaooo.
—Wizkid Soldier back up (@bigwizarrdd) June 17, 2023
Did Grammy just called our boy Wizkid an Up and coming artist!! This is what u get when u are always being Carried by other acts ? pic.twitter.com/sXFLZJ1QXV
—Sapa of 30BG (@Dejuwon2) June 17, 2023
Grammy don put Wizkid among new cats??? pic.twitter.com/MfO29WuAOa
—Towoju Isaac (@olopa_01) June 17, 2023
Wizkid is bigger than grammy
—evelyn (@evve__lynn) June 17, 2023
Just saw these on Grammy’s Instagram story
Remaaaa?? pic.twitter.com/mmwXIjbBj1
—D¶nie| ? (@Nnamarlian) June 17, 2023
In 2021, Wizkid won his first-ever Grammy award for his role in ‘Brown Skin Girl’, a 2019 song by Beyonce, the American musician.
His contributions to the Nigerian music industry have earned him several achievements.
He is the most awarded African artiste at the BET Awards (3), Soul Train Awards (3), Billboard Awards (3), iHeartRadio Music Awards (2), and MOBO Awards (6) among others.
Wizkid is also regarded as one of the biggest and most influential African artistes of all time.