Entertainment

Nigerian Superstar Tems Wins Big At The 67th Grammys

Nigerian singer Tems won the Best African Song Performance award at the 67th Grammys.

The singer who led the Nigerian contingent with three nominations won the prize for her single ‘Love Me Jeje’ in a category packed with Nigerian superstars.

It was a history-making night for the two-time winner who became the first Nigerian artist to win the category.

Other historic feats include Kendrick Lamar’s 5 wins which made him the second rapper since Chidish Gambino to win the Song of the Year and Record of the Year categories.

Kendrick Lamar’s ‘Not Like US’ also won the Best Rap Song, Best Rap Performance, and Best Music Video awards to take his tally to 22 thus becoming the third rapper with the most Grammys.

Jay Z broke his tie (24) with Kanye West after winning for Beyonce’s ‘Cowboy Carter’ which won the Album of the Year, Best Country Album, and also delivered the Best Country Duo Performance.

Beyonce’s three wins at the 67th Grammys extend her record as the artist with the most wins with 35.

See the full winners list below.

Record of the Year
“Not Like Us,” Kendrick Lamar

Album of the Year
“Cowboy Carter,” Beyoncé

Song of the Year
“Not Like Us,” Kendrick Lamar, songwriter (Kendrick Lamar)

Best New Artist
Chappell Roan

Producer of the Year, Non-Classical
Daniel Nigro

Songwriter of the Year, Non-Classical
Amy Allen

Best Pop Solo Performance
“Espresso,” Sabrina Carpenter

Best Pop Duo/Group Performance
“Die With a Smile,” Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars

Best Pop Vocal Album
“Short n’ Sweet,” Sabrina Carpenter

Best Dance/Electronic Recording
“Neverender,” Justice and Tame Impala

Best Dance Pop Recording
“Von Dutch,” Charli XCX

Best Dance/Electronic Album
“Brat,” Charli XCX

Best Remixed Recording
“Espresso (Mark Ronson x FNZ Working Late Remix),” FNZ and Mark Ronson, remixers (Sabrina Carpenter)

Best Rock Performance
“Now and Then,” The Beatles

Best Metal Performance
“Mea Culpa (Ah! Ça ira!),” Gojira, Marina Viotti and Victor Le Masne

Best Rock Song
“Broken Man,” Annie Clark, songwriter (St. Vincent)

Best Rock Album
“Hackney Diamonds,” The Rolling Stones

Best Alternative Music Performance
“Flea,” St. Vincent

Best Alternative Music Album
“All Born Screaming,” St. Vincent

Best R&B Performance
“Made for Me (Live on BET),” Muni Long

Best Traditional R&B Performance
“That’s You,” Lucky Daye

Best R&B Song
“Saturn,” Rob Bisel, Cian Ducrot, Carter Lang, Solána Rowe, Jared Solomon and Scott Zhang, songwriters (SZA)

Best Progressive R&B Album
“So Glad to Know You,” Avery*Sunshine
“Why Lawd?,” NxWorries (Anderson .Paak and Knxwledge)

Best R&B Album
“11:11 (Deluxe),” Chris Brown

Best Rap Performance
“Not Like Us,” Kendrick Lamar

Best Melodic Rap Performance
“3:AM,” Rapsody featuring Erykah Badu

Best Rap Song
“Not Like Us,” Kendrick Lamar, songwriter (Kendrick Lamar)

Best Spoken Word Poetry Album

“The Heart, the Mind, the Soul,” Tank and the Bangas

Best Jazz Performance
“Twinkle Twinkle Little Me,” Samara Joy featuring Sullivan Fortner

Best Jazz Vocal Album
“A Joyful Holiday,” Samara Joy

Best Jazz Instrumental Album
“Remembrance,” Chick Corea and Béla Fleck

Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album
“Bianca Reimagined: Music for Paws and Persistence,” Dan Pugach Big Band

Best Latin Jazz Album
“Cubop Lives!,” Luques Curtis, Zaccai Curtis, Willie Martinez, Camilo Molina and Reinaldo de Jesus

Best Alternative Jazz Album
“No More Water: The Gospel of James Baldwin,” Meshell Ndegeocello

Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album
“Visions,” Norah Jones

Best Contemporary Instrumental Album
“Plot Armor,” Taylor Eigsti

Best Musical Theater Album
“Hell’s Kitchen,” Shoshana Bean, Brandon Victor Dixon, Kecia Lewis and Maleah Joi Moon, principal vocalists; Adam Blackstone, Alicia Keys and Tom Kitt, producers (Alicia Keys, composer and lyricist) (Original Broadway Cast)

Best Country Solo Performance
“It Takes a Woman,” Chris Stapleton

Best Country Duo/Group Performance
“II Most Wanted,” Beyoncé featuring Miley Cyrus

Best Country Song
“The Architect,” Shane McAnally, Kacey Musgraves and Josh Osborne, songwriters (Kacey Musgraves)

Best Country Album
“Cowboy Carter,” Beyoncé

Best Americana Performance
“American Dreaming,” Sierra Ferrell

Best American Roots Song
“American Dreaming,” Sierra Ferrell and Melody Walker, songwriters (Sierra Ferrell)

Best Americana Album
“Trail of Flowers,” Sierra Ferrell

Best Bluegrass Album
“Live Vol. 1,” Billy Strings

Best Traditional Blues Album
“Swingin’ Live at the Church in Tulsa,” The Taj Mahal Sextet

Best Contemporary Blues Album

“Mileage,” Ruthie Foster

Best Folk Album
“Woodland,” Gillian Welch and David Rawlings

Best Regional Roots Music Album
“Kuini,” Kalani Pe’a

Best Gospel Performance/Song
“One Hallelujah,” Tasha Cobbs Leonard, Erica Campbell and Israel Houghton featuring Jonathan McReynolds and Jekalyn Carr; G. Morris Coleman, Israel Houghton, Kenneth Leonard, Jr., Tasha Cobbs Leonard and Naomi Raine, songwriters

Best Contemporary Christian Music Performance/Song
“That’s My King,” CeCe Winans; Taylor Agan, Kellie Gamble, Lloyd Nicks and Jess Russ, songwriters

Best Gospel Album
“More Than This,” CeCe Winans

Best Contemporary Christian Music Album
“Heart of a Human,” Doe

Best Roots Gospel Album
“Church,” Cory Henry

Best Latin Pop Album
“Las Mujeres Ya No Lloran,” Shakira

Best Música Urbana Album
“Las Letras Ya No Importan,” Residente

Best Latin Rock or Alternative Album
“¿Quién Trae las Cornetas?,” Rawayana

Best Música Mexicana Album (Including Tejano)
“Boca Chueca, Vol. 1,” Carín León

Best Tropical Latin Album
“Alma, Corazón y Salsa (Live at Gran Teatro Nacional),” Tony Succar, Mimy Succar

Best Global Music Performance
“Bemba Colora,” Sheila E. featuring Gloria Estefan and Mimy Succar

Best African Music Performance
“Love Me JeJe,” Tems

Best Global Music Album
“Alkebulan II,” Matt B featuring Royal Philharmonic Orchestra

Best Reggae Album
“Bob Marley: One Love — Music Inspired by the Film (Deluxe),” (Various Artists)

Best New Age, Ambient or Chant Album
“Triveni,” Wouter Kellerman, Eru Matsumoto and Chandrika Tandon

Best Children’s Music Album
“Brillo, Brillo!,” Lucky Diaz and the Family Jam Band

Best Comedy Album
“The Dreamer,” Dave Chappelle

Best Audio Book, Narration and Storytelling Recording
“Last Sundays in Plains: A Centennial Celebration,” Jimmy Carter

Best Compilation Soundtrack for Visual Media
“Maestro: Music by Leonard Bernstein,” Bradley Cooper, Yannick Nézet-Séguin (London Symphony Orchestra)

Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media (Includes Film and Television)
“Dune: Part Two,” Hans Zimmer, composer

Best Score Soundtrack for Video Games and Other Interactive Media
“Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord,” Winifred Phillips, composer

Best Song Written for Visual Media
“It Never Went Away,” from “American Symphony”; Jon Batiste and Dan Wilson, songwriters (Jon Batiste)

Best Music Video
“Not Like Us” (Kendrick Lamar), Dave Free and Kendrick Lamar, video directors; Jack Begert, Cornell Brown, Sam Canter, Jared Heinke, Jamie Rabineau and Anthony Saleh, video producers

Best Music Film
“American Symphony” (Jon Batiste) Matthew Heineman, video director; Lauren Domino, Matthew Heineman and Joedan Okun, video producers

Best Recording Package
“Brat,” Charli XCX, Brent David Freaney and Imogene Strauss, art directors (Charli XCX)

Best Boxed or Special Limited Edition Package
“Mind Games,” Simon Hilton and Sean Ono Lennon, art directors (John Lennon)

Best Album Notes
“Centennial,” Ricky Riccardi, album notes writer (King Oliver’s Creole Jazz Band and Various Artists)

Best Historical Album
“Centennial,” Meagan Hennessey and Richard Martin, compilation producers; Richard Martin, mastering engineer; Richard Martin, restoration engineer (King Oliver’s Creole Jazz Band and Various Artists)

Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical
“I/O,” Tchad Blake, Oli Jacobs, Katie May, Dom Shaw and Mark “Spike” Stent, engineers; Matt Colton, mastering engineer (Peter Gabriel)

Best Engineered Album, Classical
“Bruckner: Symphony No. 7; Bates: Resurrexit,” Mark Donahue and John Newton, engineers; Mark Donahue, mastering engineer (Manfred Honeck and Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra)

Producer of the Year, Classical
Elaine Martone

Best Immersive Audio Album
“I/O (In-Side Mix),” Hans-Martin Buff, immersive mix engineer; Peter Gabriel, immersive producer (Peter Gabriel)

Best Instrumental Composition
“Strands,” Pascal Le Boeuf, composer (Akropolis Reed Quintet, Pascal Le Boeuf and Christian Euman)

Best Arrangement, Instrumental or A Cappella
“Bridge Over Troubled Water,” Jacob Collier, Tori Kelly and John Legend, arrangers (Jacob Collier featuring John Legend and Tori Kelly)

Best Arrangement, Instruments and Vocals
“Alma,” Erin Bentlage, Sara Gazarek, Johanye Kendrick and Amanda Taylor, arrangers (säje featuring Regina Carter)

Best Orchestral Performance Award
“Ortiz: Revolución Diamantina,” Gustavo Dudamel, conductor (Los Angeles Philharmonic)

Best Opera Recording Award
“Saariaho: Adriana Mater,” Esa-Pekka Salonen, conductor; Fleur Barron, Axelle Fanyo, Nicholas Phan and Christopher Purves; Jason O’Connell, producer (San Francisco Symphony; San Francisco Symphony Chorus; Timo Kurkikangas)

Best Choral Performance
“Ochre,” Donald Nally, conductor (The Crossing)

Best Chamber Music/Small Ensemble Performance
“Rectangles and Circumstance,” Caroline Shaw and Sō Percussion

Best Classical Instrumental Solo
“Bach: Goldberg Variations,” Víkingur Ólafsson

Best Classical Solo Vocal Album
“Beyond the Years — Unpublished Songs of Florence Price,” Karen Slack, soloist; Michelle Cann, pianist

Best Classical Compendium
“Ortiz: Revolución Diamantina,” Gustavo Dudamel, conductor; Dmitriy Lipay, producer

Best Contemporary Classical Composition
“Ortiz: Revolución Diamantina,” Gabriela Ortiz, composer (Gustavo Dudamel, Los Angeles Philharmonic and Los Angeles Master Chorale)

Best American Roots Performance
“Lighthouse,” Sierra Ferrell

Best Rap Album
“Alligator Bites Never Heal,” Doechii

Celebs

‘I smoked 40 sticks a day for 13 years’: Ebuka opens up on nicotine addiction as Banky W revisits porn struggle

Ebuka Obi-Uchendu says he smoked up to 40 cigarettes daily for 13 years, while Banky W revisited his past pornography addiction on Mentality with Ebuka. Ebuka Obi-Uchendu has revealed that he began smoking in JSS3 and spent the next 13 years addicted to cigarettes, reaching a peak of two packs, roughly 40 sticks, every single day by the time he was in university.

The television host disclosed the latest episode of his podcast Mentality with Ebuka, which aired on Friday, May 22. The episode featured singer and pastor Banky W and medical content creator Aproko Doctor in a candid conversation about addiction, its origins, and the long road out of it.

“I started smoking in JSS3, which is crazy young,” Ebuka said. “It was basically peer pressure, wanting to prove myself, wanting to belong. By the time I was done with secondary school, I had become full-on. Got into university, and by university, I was doing about two packs a day. That’s about 40 sticks of cigarettes every single day.”

He added that his exit from the habit was less a dramatic decision and more a test of willpower. “The last stick of cigarettes I had was in February 2008. I didn’t quit. I just kept saying let me see how much longer I will hold out for, and now it’s been almost 18 years.”

Banky W used the same platform to revisit a confession he had made publicly before, his years-long struggle with pornography addiction, tracing it back to a freshman dormitory in a New York university where a classmate had shared an open hard drive filled with explicit content accessible to the entire floor.

“I wonder how many of us got trapped in that moment,” he said. He described the experience of trying to stop as a confrontation with something far more entrenched than he had anticipated.

“When it’s now time to stop, you realise you’re dealing with demons that are much stronger than you. That was where the reality dawned on me.” He said it took a deliberate journey to reach a place of freedom, and that he has since addressed the issue openly from the pulpit, part of what he described as a growing willingness among pastors to tackle subjects previously considered too uncomfortable for the church.

The episode is the latest in Ebuka’s Mentality series, which has carved out a space for honest, personal conversations that Nigerian public figures rarely have on record.

Entertainment

Kizz Daniel announces that he will be releasing two albums in 2026

After posting his initially scheduled ‘Uncle K’ album in 2025, the hitmaker is making up for it by releasing two projects in 2026. Afrobeats superstar Kizz Daniel is gearing up for a busy year as he announces plans to release two albums.

On May 15, 2026, the hitmaker shared a post on his Instagram story unveiling the titles of two albums he intends to release later in the year. The revelation comes days after he teased what’s expected to be his first release of the year.

“Two albums this year. Thanks for your love and patience,” he posted on his Instagram story.

The prospective projects titled ‘Uncle K’ and ‘Radio Gidi’ will be a follow-up to his 2025 EP ‘Uncle K: Lemon Chase’, which had 7 tracks with guest appearances from FOLA, rapper Odumodublvk, and street pop star Bella Shmurda.

Back in 2025, the award-winning star had earlier shared his plans to release the album ‘Uncle K’ before postponing it after losing his mother-in-law and later releasing the EP that serves as a teaser for what listeners should expect.

With two albums scheduled for 2026, Kizz Daniel appears to be making up for not releasing an LP since the 20-track album ‘Maverick’ in July 2023. In 2024, he dazzled with the hit-filled four-track EP ‘TZA,’ which spawned the hit records ‘Sooner,’ ‘Too Busy To Be Bae,’ and ‘Twe Twe.’

Known for his ability to coin hit records that ride on the familiarity of language and musical simplicity to attract listeners across demographics, fans will be expecting a handful of hit records from his upcoming album.

So far in 2026, he has delivered a guest verse on G4ZI’s ‘Energy’. With his upcoming single expected to be released in the coming weeks, he appears ready for an explosive summer.

In a career that has spanned a decade, Kizz Daniel has become one of Afrobeats’ most reliable hitmakers, with his music finding eager listenership among millions of fans drawn to his witty lyricism and catchy melodies.

Celebs

Asake Drops fourth studio album M$NEY, featuring DJ Snake, Tiakola Amongst Others

Four albums in, two Grammy nominations to his name, the most entries on the Billboard U.S. Afrobeats Songs chart, and the most-streamed artist on Spotify Nigeria, Asake drops M$NEY, his fourth studio album released on the 1st of May via GIRAN REPUBLIC and EMPIRE.

The 13-track project is Asake’s most sonically varied to date. It opens with a live choral performance (an unusual choice that immediately signals this is not going to be a straightforward Afrobeats record) and moves through orchestral arrangements, jazz-tinged strings, dance production, and amapiano before it is done.

Speaking on the album, Asake said: “M$NEY is a reflection of my spiritual and creative journey. Everything flows from a place of gratitude to God, and every moment that’s shaped me. I stay true to myself but also weave in new creative expressions from my life experiences and personal evolution.”

Fans got their first taste of the project as far back as February 2025 with ‘Why Love’, followed by ‘Badman Gangsta’ featuring French artist Tiakola, a track built around a reimagined sample of Amerie’s ‘1 Thing’ that turned out to be one of the more interesting sonic swings of his singles run.

Then came ‘Worship’ with DJ Snake, which pushed the project into full cross-continental territory.

The full album expands on all of that. Outside the previously released singles, the album includes ‘Gratitude’, ‘Forgiveness’, and ‘Asambe’, a collaboration with South African amapiano producer Kabza De Small. It’s a pairing that will likely draw attention, given both artists’ standing in their respective markets.

The album artwork was created by Iraqi-Dutch artist Arthar Jabar.