Asake Grammy push: M$NEY, Jogodo and Gratitude entered for 2027, with Tems and Seun Kuti also in the race

Asake has put four works forward for the 2027 Grammy Awards, his label Giran Republik announced on Thursday 8 October, and first-round voting by Recording Academy members opens on Monday 12 October. The Asake Grammy push covers eight category placements, including Album of the Year for M$NEY, which has just become his fourth project to pass 500 million Spotify streams. Tems and Seun Kuti are in the race too. Here is what each entered and the dates that decide who becomes a nominee.

By Editorial Team

What we know

• Asake’s entries (REPORTED). According to an announcement from Giran Republik, reported by Within Nigeria and Naija On Point, M$NEY is entered for Album of the Year and Best Global Music Album. “Gratitude” is entered for Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best African Music Performance. “Jogodo” with Wizkid is entered for Best African Music Performance, and “Worship” with DJ Snake for Best Dance Pop Recording.
• The streaming milestone (REPORTED). DancehallMag reports that M$NEY passed 500 million Spotify streams, a mark first flagged by the chart account Album Talks on 8 October. It joins Mr. Money With The Vibe, Work Of Art and Lungu Boy, which puts Asake level with Burna Boy on four projects past that line.
• His Grammy record so far (FACT). Asake has two nominations and no wins: Best African Music Performance for “Amapiano” with Olamide at the 2024 ceremony, and for “MMS” with Wizkid in 2025.
• The calendar (REPORTED). The Recording Academy’s published timetable, as reported by Within Nigeria and Naija On Point, puts first-round voting from 12 to 22 October 2026, nominations on 16 November, final voting from 10 December to 7 January 2027, and the ceremony on 7 February 2027 in Los Angeles.

Tems and Seun Kuti are also in the race

Tems is reported to have entered her project Love Is a Kingdom for Album of the Year, Best Global Music Album, Best Album Cover and Best Engineered Album (REPORTED). “What You Need” is entered in the R&B field, “Raindance” with Dave for Best African Music Performance, and “Bunce Road Blues” with J. Cole and Future for Best Melodic Rap Performance.

That would build on a strong Grammy run. Tems won as a songwriter on Future’s “Wait for U” in 2023 and took Best African Music Performance for “Love Me JeJe” in 2025 (FACT). “What You Need” is also one of her fan-voted nominations at this year’s Soul Train Awards, as our guide to the Soul Train Awards 2026 and how to vote explains.

Seun Kuti, the youngest son of Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, has entered two songs for Best African Music Performance: “Na Dem”, featuring Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello, and “Problems”, featuring the Jamaican reggae artist Kabaka Pyramid (REPORTED). His only nomination so far came in 2019, when Black Times with Egypt 80 was up for Best World Music Album (FACT).

What an Asake Grammy submission actually means

A submission is not a nomination. Labels enter work during the online entry period, which ran from 7 July to 21 August. Screening committees then check that each entry meets the rules and sits in the right category. Only after that do voting members choose the nominees.

So the headline categories should be read with care. Many labels enter Album of the Year or Record of the Year as a matter of course, and only eight acts are nominated in each. The likelier target for most African acts is Best African Music Performance, where Asake has twice made the final list.

For a fuller walk-through of how members vote in each round, read our explainer on how Grammy voting works.

Why this year’s field looks different

Two things stand out. First, the Best African Music Performance category is likely to be crowded. Asake alone has two songs in it, Tems has one, Seun Kuti has two, and other Nigerian, Ghanaian and South African artists will have entered too. Strong streaming numbers help an act get noticed, but Academy members vote on the music, not on Spotify totals.

Second, some of the biggest global stars have already said they will sit out. Several acts, including Drake, BTS and Stray Kids, are not submitting for 2027, as we reported in our story on the 2027 Grammy opt-outs. That could open a little space in the general field, though it is unlikely to change the outcome in the global categories.

If you want to understand how a 500 million stream total translates into money, our guide to how Spotify royalties work breaks it down. For the wider chart picture, see our Afrobeats chart tracker.

What we do not know yet

We have not seen the full list of Nigerian and African submissions, and the Recording Academy does not publish entries. We also do not know how the screening committees will place each song. A track entered for one category can be moved to another before voting begins. No artist named here has said publicly how they rate their chances.

What happens next

• 12 to 22 October: first-round voting by Recording Academy members.
• 16 November: nominations for the 2027 Grammy Awards are announced.
• 10 December to 7 January 2027: final-round voting.
• 7 February 2027: the 69th Grammy Awards in Los Angeles.

We will update this story when the nominations are out. More Afrobeats news: Afrobeats.

Photo credits: Featured image: Asake performing in Toronto, 2024. Photo: Mensah Memories, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 3.0). Source. In-article image: Tems on NdaniTV Sessions, 2019. Photo: NdaniTV, via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 3.0). Source.

Sources

• Within Nigeria: 2027 Grammy submissions: Asake, Tems and Seun Kuti in the race for nominations (10 Oct 2026)
• Naija On Point: Asake targets first Grammy win with M$NEY, Wizkid collaboration (9 Oct 2026)
• DancehallMag: Asake’s M$NEY crosses 500 million Spotify streams, tying Burna Boy’s record (10 Oct 2026)
• BellaNaija: Asake’s “Oba” music video (10 Oct 2026)