By Ferdinand Ekechukwu
Superstar singer, Wizkid, last Tuesday night, bagged five nominations at the 2021 Soul Train Awards. His partner in “Essence,” Tems also bagged four nominations. Wizkid’s and Tems’ nominations come in the Song of The Year, Video of The Year, The Ashford and Simpson songwriter’s Award and Best Collaboration for the groundbreaking single, ‘Essence.’ Wizkid also got a nomination for Album of The Year, for Made in Lagos, his fourth studio album, while Tems got another nomination for Best New Artiste.
It’s been a stellar year for both artistes. Wizkid has coasted with his fourth album while Tems has also featured on a Drake record. The Soul Train Music Awards honours the best in African-American culture music and entertainment. This year’s award will hold on November 20, 2021 at the Apollo Theatre.
The Soul Train Awards nomination comes shortly after the Starboy Wizkid announced his fifth studio album. The afrobeats singer and songwriter took to his Instagram page last Saturday, saying his forthcoming record would drop on the final day of his Made in Lagos tour. He also gave the title as ‘More Love, Less Ego’, while promising his fans and followers that they wouldn’t wait for too long for the album. The Made in Lagos Tour will end in Montreal, Canada on January 22, 2022.
Recall that it took the Grammy award-winning artiste a little over three years to release his last album. Sharing a picture of his Made in Lagos album cover, the singer wrote in his caption: “1 year already! Thank you for riding with me. I’m just very grateful for all the love and blessings. Promise not to make you wait too long for the next one. ‘More Love Less Ego’ dropping on the last day of tour! I love you!” The ‘made in Lagos’ star made this known while celebrating one solid year of his last album which has brought him tremendous recognitions.
Made in Lagos featured artistes spanning genres and geography – Projexx and Damian Marley from Jamaica, Ella Mai and Skepta from the U.K., Tems, Burna, Tay Iwar, and Terri from Nigeria, and H.E.R. from the U.S. The album has been breaking records internationally, streaming over a billion times.
It’s also produced Africa’s first №1 top 10 hit on the Billboard Hot 100. More so, on August 31, 2021, Wizkid’s ‘Essence’ with Tems became the most searched song on the music search platform, Shazam. It also went platinum in the US. In some circles, “Essence,” a global smash by the Nigerian pop star, was the only serious contender for the song of the summer. A Justin Bieber remix released in August surely didn’t hurt the case. “He loved the record, and I just wanted to hear what he would do on it,” says Wizkid of the Bieber collaboration. “And I heard it and it was dope, so why not?” Wizkid told Rolling Stone magazine a fortnight ago.
“Essence” and its remix undoubtedly raised Wizkid’s profile abroad, but he’s been making bright Afropop for more than a decade, and Western stars have been taking notice for years. In March, he took home his first Grammy, for his role in the music video for Beyoncé’s “Brown Skin Girl,” a Lion King: The Gift track on which he’s featured; before that, he appeared on Drake’s 2016 hit “One Dance.” With his fourth studio album, Made in Lagos, Wizkid solidified his standing as one of Africa’s most notable artistes, with a vision and reach that stretch far beyond his home.
Originally published at Thisday