Not a Nigerian award: Somizi calls out Grammy entitlement after Tyla win
South African media personality Somizi Mhlongo has publicly defended Grammy winner Tyla against criticism from Nigerian fans who questioned her victory. Mhlongo addressed claims about category placement and called for unity among African artists, stating that the Grammy Awards are based on quality, not nationality.
Image: Instagram via: Somizi Mhlongo
South African media personality Somizi Mhlongo has publicly defended fellow South African artist, Tyla, following a backlash from Nigerians regarding her Grammy win.
Tyla's Grammy victory reignited the debate among Nigerians, who argue that she unfairly surpassed their nominated artists, including Davido, Wizkid, Burna Boy, and Ayra Starr.
The complaints largely centered on a sense of perpetual disappointment, questioning the purpose of the Nigerian artists' nominations.
Other critics alleged the Grammys were unfair, suggesting Tyla was incorrectly placed in the category, as her music is supposedly R&B and should have been grouped with other R&B acts. Numerous allegations from Nigerians claim Tyla's Grammy win was illegitimate.
Mhlongo weighed in on the situation, stating, “Grammys are not Nigerian music awards. The level of entitlement thinking that only Nigerians who are nominated are qualified, I think what hurts the most is that it’s a girl, and it’s not a Nigerian lady… It’s a South African woman, who was nominated amongst three Nigerians, if I’m not mistaken.”
Mhlongo interpreted the negative commentary directed at Tyla as an attempt to undermine Davido's reputation. He asserted that these actions are making Africa a global laughingstock, acting as if Africans were a piece of pie and now fighting over it.
“Davido is too much of a superstar to be caught up in this (nonsense). Everyone in that category deserved to win. Trust me, I doubt there was gonna be a South African who was going to complain if any of the people who were nominated won. But South Africans were going to be provoked if a Nigerian won. Yo! We were not gonna hear the end of it,” continued Mhlongo.
Mhlongo confronted the confusion expressed by Nigerians regarding Tyla's music not being Afrobeats, stating, "I want to correct you, that category was not the Best Afrobeats Performance. It was the Best African Music Performance. And stop saying Tyla's music is not African. Who the f*** do you think you are?"
She’s South African, and we South Africans enjoy and resonate with the music. Stop thinking you’re the Gods of music, you’re taking away the beauty of Nigerian music,” he added.
The Grammys’ CEO, Harvey Mason Jr., once explained the process behind winning a Grammy and said, “You have to understand that the only way to win is to have the membership of the academy vote for you. To be a member of the academy, you have to be a professional working in music in the United States.”
He further explained that “Once you’re a member of the Recording Academy, all the music gets submitted. The members of the Recording Academy will evaluate it on the quality, not the sales, not the streams, not how many fans, not how many followers, but purely on the opinion, that’s how you win.”
Regardless of all the claims, the confusion, and the disappointment from Nigerians, all the nominees and Tyla have remained silent regarding all this.
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