Multi-Grammy-winning singer, Angelique Kidjo, has penned a glowing tribute to Burna Boy, who was recognised by Time Magazine, as one of the top 100 most influential people of 2024.
Kidjo praised Burna Boy for finding inspiration in African folk music.
She alluded that the world music as it stands now derives most of his inspiration from African genre of music and African artists have no need to mimic the American style of music.
Kidjo said: “Ten years ago or so, when young African musicians would come to me for advice, I would tell them, “You don’t need to mimic American artists!
“The world needs the amazing richness and beauty of our traditional African music and our culture. This land is where most of modern music comes from. This source of inspiration is inexhaustible. Its freshness and its elegance will get the world’s attention for sure.”
She went further by praising Burna for following in the footsteps of the legendary Fela Kuti, through his style of music and in promoting the Afrobeats Genre itself.
The Grammy Awards Winner said: “Burna Boy has made that vision a global reality. Inspired by the fantastic drums of Nigerian folk music, and studied in the craft of the great African singer-songwriters, he follows in the footsteps of Fela Kuti—the internationally celebrated Afrobeats artist and activist.
“Burna Boy’s deeply original flow and his signature groove have conquered the world with an impressive series of firsts: in 2023, he became the first African artist to sell out a U.S. stadium, and in 2024, he became the first Afrobeats artist to sing at the Grammys. He is history in the making. Now a whole generation of young people from the continent is looking up to him.”
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