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The Grammy Africa Awards could be launched around 2029 or 2030, according to Lady Dentaa Amoateng MBE, Chief Executive Officer of GUBA Enterprise.
Dentaa, also a consultant to the Chief Executive Officer of the Recording Academy, Harvey Mason Jr., revealed on Hitz FM’s Daybreak Hitz to Kwame Dadzie and Doreen Avio that while the initiative was announced in 2024, it will take years to establish the necessary structures.
“It’s going to be a long process because it needs to establish that membership. So it’s something that is going to happen maybe 2029, 2030. It’s going to take a while. Africa is big and there are a lot of different genres of music,” she explained.
Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa and Rwanda have so far been earmarked to host the awards once the scheme begins.
Addressing why Ghana was not listed, Dentaa said: “There is a financial commitment that is involved which is quite heavy for government, so that is why some of the countries have not been able to be part of it.”
In 2024, the Recording Academy, organisers of the Grammy Awards, announced plans to create an African version of the scheme to serve the continent’s music industry and expand its global footprint, similar to the Latin Grammys introduced in 1997.
As part of the initiative, the Academy has signed agreements with Ministries of Culture and cultural stakeholders in Africa and the Middle East.
Partner institutions include the Ministries of Culture in Kenya, Nigeria and Saudi Arabia, the Department of Culture and Tourism in Abu Dhabi, the Rwanda Development Board, and South Africa’s Ministry of Sports, Arts and Culture. Memoranda of Understanding have also been signed with Ghana and Ivory Coast.
“This is exciting because music is one of humanity’s greatest natural resources,” said Harvey Mason Jr., CEO of the Recording Academy. “It is critical that the people who dedicate themselves to creating music have support, resources and opportunities, no matter where they are from.”
The Academy’s leadership spent two years touring these regions, holding listening sessions, meeting governments and engaging music creators to understand the industry’s needs.
In 2023, the Recording Academy introduced a new category, Best African Music Performance, which includes genres such as highlife and Ghanaian drill. It was created alongside Best Alternative Jazz Album and Best Pop Dance Recording.
The category followed earlier discussions about introducing an Afrobeats award category. During his visit to Ghana in 2022, Harvey Mason Jr., the Chief Executive Officer of the Grammy Awards, confirmed that the Academy was carefully considering the best ways to represent African music at the Grammys.
