2022 is in full swing, and it’s about to be a really exciting year for African music. While no one can precisely predict the sequence of events that will unfold in the coming months, especially in these crazy times, we can hazard a few guesses by analyzing the trends of the years past. Without further ado – and with the caveat that we are not be held responsible for predictions that don’t come to fruition but will take the full credit for the ones that do – here are 8 bold predictions for the 2022 musical year:
FIREBOY GETS A GRAMMY NOMINATION IN THE BEST WORLD MUSIC CATEGORY FOR HIS THIRD STUDIO ALBUM
The career trajectory of YBNL’s headliner has been beautiful to watch, and with Ed Sheeran giving “Peru” even more exposure than it already had, betting against Fireboy would be just as smart as challenging a gorilla to a fistfight. His third studio album is scheduled to drop sometime this year, and his distribution deal with EMPIRE should get it to a large audience in the US. If he puts out the quality of music we have come to expect from him, a Grammy nomination for the album just might be in the offing for him. Let’s see how this one plays out.
WIZKID DOES NOT RELEASE MORE LOVE, LESS EGO IN 2022
Big Wiz is known for many great qualities, but honesty about release dates is not one of them. Just look at how long he made us wait for Made In Lagos – though we can’t deny that it was worth the wait! Now, he promised to release his next studio album titled “More Love, Less Ego” on the last day of his tour, which happens to be sometime during the tail end of January 2022. But you know what? Our guess is that the only thing he will be releasing that day is a tweet with an eagle emoji after the show. And the months of 2022 will run by, and we’ll get everything except the album he promised. We dare you to prove us wrong, Machala!
A NIGERIAN FEMALE ARTISTE BREAKS INTO THE TOP 20 OF THE US BILLBOARD HOT 100 WITH A LEAD SINGLE
We think it’s fairly obvious that the women will have a big year in the music industry, so there is no point predicting that. Tems, Ayra Starr, Fave were excellent last year, and the likes of Simi, Tiwa Savage, and Yemi Alade are poised to get even bigger this year. It feels like this is the year a Nigerian female singer gets to storm major foreign music charts as a lead artiste. We will be extra bold and call a top 20 appearance on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart for one of our ladies. PS: If Amaarae happens to achieve this amazing feat first, this prediction is valid, because as we all know, Amaarae is Nigerian. Thank you.
AFROBEATS BREAKS INTO THE ASIAN MARKET
Afrobeats has fully penetrated the US, UK, and most of Europe. But we think our sound is about to make a surprising and interesting entry into Asia. There were strong signs to suggest that last year. Tiktok videos of young Asians vibing to and even hopping on the Afrobeats sound made the rounds, and we dare not underestimate the importance of that platform to music worldwide. It looks like the Asian continent is now ready to embrace our music, and the African artistes that are alive to that massive opportunity can find career-defining success there with the right PR strategy.
LADIPOE SCORES AN INTERNATIONAL COLLABORATION
The self-acclaimed leader of the revival has backed up his claim with action in the last two years. He is putting rap back on the map with hit singles. If any Nigerian rapper is going to attract an international collaboration, it’s hard to look past Ladipoe as the man for the job. And we really think this is the year he will do it. And why not? Rema and Ayra Starr have scored international features, so it won’t be hard for Don Jazzy to set one in motion for Ladipoe. And now that Ladope has affirmed his status as the best in the country, the time to start extending his reach across the seas is now. If the strategists at Mavins agree with this opinion, a collaboration with a foreign artiste will happen.
AMAARAE AND BLACK SHERIF LEAD GHANA’S CHARGE ON THE INTERNATIONAL SCENE
Ghanaian music is superb, and 2022 should be the year the rest of the world succumbs to its magic. Who are the artistes that can take Ghana to the next level? Surely, Amaarae has to be considered in this conversation. She achieved incredible feats with the viral remix of “SAD GIRLZ LUV MONEY,” and we know there’s definitely a lot more where that came from. Black Sherif is a slightly riskier call, but if he can maintain the momentum with which he ended 2021, he just might be a force to reckon with this year. Wale’s recent cosign on Twitter is sure to be worth a lot in the grand scheme of things. Honourable mentions go to Gyakie, Kwesi Arthur, and Yaw Tog; there might be some major madness from them this year as well.
DAVIDO GETS HIS FIRST GRAMMY NOD
While his status as a certified hitmaker can never be called into question, many still think Davido needs a Grammy nomination or win before he can claim to be the best to ever do it. Well, this might just be the year he gets it. Why? The Best Global Music performance category that has recently been introduced to the Grammy awards seems to be just perfect for Davido. He is an acknowledged master of releasing hit singles, and the continued expansion of his fame and popularity into the US means he is well placed for a nomination in that category. Now all he has to do is cook up a megahit single, which we damn well know he is capable of.
SOUTH AFRICA GIVES US YET ANOTHER SOUND TO RAVE TO
The place of South African artistes as one of the shapers of popular sounds is perhaps a tad bit underrated. The brilliant music minds from the south gave us different variants of House music, and of course, Amapiano, the sound no one seems to be able to get enough of. This is in addition to leading the rest of Africa as far as hip-hop on the continent goes. So you should fully expect South Africa to pave the way yet again in 2022. There are already enough interesting sounds domination their national music scene, and one or more of them should make the headlines before the year runs out.