AFRIMA 2025 Full List: Davido, Burna Boy, Ayra Starr Shine In Nominees List -

The All Africa Music Awards, AFRIMA, has released the official nominees’ list for its 2025 edition, setting the stage for what promises to be one of the fiercest contests in recent years.

Heavyweights such as Davido, Burna Boy, Fally Ipupa, El Grande Toto, DJ Maphorisa and Amr Diab will be facing off against newer sensations like Shallipopi, Himra, Moliy, Ayra Starr, Juma Jux, and Senegal’s Mia Guissé.

This was disclosed in a statement released by AFRIMA on Wednesday.

According to the International Committee of AFRIMA, in partnership with the African Union Commission, this year’s nominations were drawn from a record-breaking 10,717 entries, the highest in the award’s 12-year history.

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After 10 days of screening, a 13-member jury shortlisted 343 nominees across 40 categories, representing Africa’s regions and the diaspora.

Nigerian Artistes Shine At AFRIMA List

Nigeria’s Burna Boy and Davido led the Nigerian charge with five nominations each. Both are in contention for Album of the Year, Burna Boy with No Sign of Weakness and Davido with 5ive.

Their hit singles also earned them nods in the Song of the Year and Best Collaboration categories.

Street-pop act Shallipopi scored four nominations, including Artiste of the Year and Song of the Year for his collaboration Laho.

Ayra Starr earned two nominations, but she will be vying for Artiste of the Year against Davido, Burna Boy, and Morocco’s El Grande Toto.

Other strong contenders include South Africa’s DJ Maphorisa with five nominations, Morocco’s El Grande Toto with five, Senegal’s Mia Guissé with five, and Ghana’s Moliy who also secured five.

Tanzania’s Diamond Platnumz, South Africa’s Tyla and Eswatini’s Uncle Waffles picked up four nominations each.

The diaspora also recorded a strong presence. French-Malian star Aya Nakamura, UK-based Darkoo, and Canadian-Congolese singer Deborah Lukalu are among the female nominees, while DJ Snake, Tayc and Niska feature in the male category.

AFRIMA jury member, Delani Makhalima, described the nominees’ list as evidence of African music’s global impact.

“For years our voices were not heard, but today African music is global. This is AFRIMA, the biggest music entity on the continent,” he said.

AFRIMA 2025, hosted in Lagos, will run from November 25 to 30, with events including the AFRIMA Music Village, the Africa Music Business Summit, the Nominees Party and the grand finale on November 30, which will be broadcast live to over 84 countries.