The nominations for the 18th Headies Awards have produced an interesting picture of the Nigerian music scene, with a new generation of artistes making a strong showing alongside some of the biggest names in Afrobeats.
Rising singer Fola leads the nominations with 10 nods, while Omah Lay follows with eight. Their tallies put both artistes ahead of the three stars who are widely regarded as Afrobeats’ Big Three, I.e Burna Boy, Davido and Wizkid individually.
Wizkid and Mavo follow with seven nominations each, while Davido and Asake have six apiece. Among the female artistes, Ayra Starr and Tiwa Savage are tied with five nominations each.
The nominations were announced on Tuesday, August 25, 2026, after the Headies opened its eligibility window to music released between August 1, 2024 and April 30, 2026. The 18th edition is scheduled to hold in Toronto, Canada, on October 25, 2026, under the theme “Africa to the World.”
Fola leads the pack with 10 nominations
Fola emerged as the biggest individual nominee of the 18th Headies, securing 10 nominations following the release of his debut album, Catharsis.
His nominations cut across some of the awards’ biggest categories. He is in the running for Album of the Year, Best Male Artiste, Digital Artiste of the Year, Best R&B Album, Best Recording of the Year, Afrobeats Single of the Year, Headies Viewers’ Choice, Best Headies Collaboration, Songwriter of the Year and Next Rated.
His showing is particularly notable because Fola is still listed among the contenders for Next Rated, an award meant to recognise an emerging artiste considered to have the potential to become a mainstream star.
In other words, the artiste leading the entire nomination table is also competing in a category designed to identify the next big thing.
Fola’s “You” is nominated for Song of the Year, Afrobeats Single of the Year, Best Recording of the Year and Headies Viewers’ Choice, while Catharsis competes for both Album of the Year and Best R&B Album.
Omah Lay follows with eight
Omah Lay is the second most-nominated artiste with eight nods. His album Clarity of Mind is in contention for Album of the Year and Afrobeats Album of the Year, while the singer is also nominated for Best Male Artiste and Best Recording of the Year. His collaboration with Davido, “With You”, is one of the most visible songs on the nomination list.
The song is nominated for Song of the Year, Afrobeats Single of the Year, Best Recording of the Year, Best Headies Collaboration and Headies Viewers’ Choice. Its music video is also nominated for Music Video of the Year.
That means Omah Lay’s eight nominations are spread across both individual and collaborative categories, giving him a strong presence in several of the major races.
Fola and Omah Lay outnumber the Afrobeats Big Three
The numbers provide one of the interesting discussions from this year’s nominations.
Wizkid has seven nominations, Davido has six and Burna Boy has five. That means Fola, with 10, and Omah Lay, with eight, have each received more nominations than any of the three established heavyweights individually.
However, the figures do not mean the Big Three have been pushed aside.
Wizkid remains a major contender, with nominations including Best Male Artiste, Digital Artiste of the Year, Afrobeats Album of the Year, Song of the Year and Headies Viewers’ Choice.
Davido’s six nominations include Afrobeats Album of the Year for 5ive, while his “With You” collaboration with Omah Lay features in several major categories.
Burna Boy, meanwhile, is nominated for Album of the Year and Afrobeats Album of the Year with No Sign of Weakness, alongside nominations for Best Male Artiste and Afrobeats Single of the Year for “Bundle by Bundle.”
So while the nomination numbers favour Fola and Omah Lay, the biggest names of the previous era remain heavily involved in the major races.
Wizkid and Mavo both have seven
Wizkid is not the only artiste sitting on seven nominations. Mavo, one of the younger names on the list, also received seven.
Mavo’s nominations include Digital Artiste of the Year, Next Rated, Best Male Artiste, Best Vocal Performance (Female), Best Headies Collaboration, Rap Single and Headies Viewers’ Choice. His presence adds another layer to the generational story running through this year’s nominations.
Mavo is competing for Next Rated alongside Fola, Fido, Llona and Shoday, while also appearing in categories that place him alongside established names.
Davido and Asake both have six
Davido and Asake are tied with six nominations each. For Davido, one of the major highlights is the performance of 5ive, which earned a nomination for Afrobeats Album of the Year. His collaboration with Omah Lay, “With You”, is also in several major categories.
Asake’s six nominations include Best Male Artiste, Digital Artiste of the Year, Song of the Year and Afrobeats Single of the Year for “Jogodo”, his collaboration with Wizkid. He is also nominated for Best Performer (Live) for his Red Bull Symphonic performance.
Ayra Starr and Tiwa Savage tie at five
The female nomination race has produced its own interesting tie, with Ayra Starr and Tiwa Savage receiving five nominations each.
Ayra Starr’s nominations include Best Female Artiste, Digital Artiste of the Year, Song of the Year for “Hot Body”, Headies Viewers’ Choice and Best Performer (Live) for her Global Citizen Festival 2025 performance.
Tiwa Savage’s five nominations include Best Female Artiste, Best Vocal Performance (Female), R&B Single of the Year, Best R&B Album and Album of the Year.
Their equal nomination count places two artistes from different stages of their careers on the same footing in the overall numbers.
The Major Battles
Beyond the individual nomination tallies, several of the biggest categories have produced strong contests.
Album of the Year
The Album of the Year race features Fola’s Catharsis, Omah Lay’s Clarity of Mind, Erigga’s G.O.A.T, Wizkid’s Morayo, Odumodublvck’s The Machine Is Coming, Tiwa Savage’s This One Is Personal and Burna Boy’s No Sign of Weakness.
The category therefore brings together established stars, respected rap acts and newer voices in one of the most competitive races of the night.
Song of the Year
Six songs are competing for Song of the Year: Kunmie’s “Arike”, “Hey Jago” by Poco Lee, Shoday and Rahman Jago, Ayra Starr’s “Hot Body”, Fido’s “Joy Is Coming”, Asake and Wizkid’s “MMS”, and Davido and Omah Lay’s “With You”.
Afrobeats Single of the Year
The Afrobeats Single of the Year category features Rema’s “Fun”, Asake and Wizkid’s “Jogodo”, Shallipopi’s “Laho”, Davido and Omah Lay’s “With You”, Fola’s “You” and Burna Boy’s “Bundle by Bundle”.
Best Male Artiste
The category has also produced an interesting mix, with Adekunle Gold, Asake, Fola, Mavo, Rema, Wizkid and Burna Boy competing for Best Male Artiste.
Best Female Artiste
Ayra Starr, Qing Madi, Sewà, Tems, Teni and Tiwa Savage are nominated for Best Female Artiste.
Next Rated gets a competitive line-up
The Next Rated category features Fido, Fola, Llona, Mavo and Shoday. The category is intended to recognise an emerging artiste considered capable of becoming a mainstream star.
Fola and Mavo’s inclusion makes the category particularly interesting because both artistes have also secured multiple nominations in major categories.
A wider African contest
The 18th Headies is not limited to Nigerian music. The nominations include separate categories for West, East, North and Central African artistes, as well as an African Diaspora-Canadian Artiste category and International Artiste of the Year.
The international category features Ciara, Dave, Gunna, Jazmine Sullivan, Shenseea and Tiakola.
The Canadian category features Debby Friday, Tôme, Bolu Ajibade, Nonso Amadi, Rooky Kamiz and Tobi.
The continental categories also feature names such as Black Sherif, King Promise, KiDi, Bien, Bruce Melodie, Harmonize, Fally Ipupa, Ferré Gola and Innoss’B.
This wider spread fits the “Africa to the World” theme attached to the 18th edition.
Full list of nominees
The 18th Headies nominations cover 35 categories, with eligible music drawn from the period between August 1, 2024 and April 30, 2026.
Rookie of the Year
Amma; Danpapa GTA; Firstklaz; Kidd Carder; NO11; Priesst; OG Abbah
Best Recording of the Year
Kunmie — “Arike”; Amaeya — “How Do You?”; Rema — “Baby (Is It a Crime)”; Omah Lay & Elmah — “Coping Mechanism”; Davido & Omah Lay — “With You”; Fola — “You”
Songwriter of the Year
Adekunle Gold; Victony; Wizard Chan; Fola; Kunmie; Amaeya
Best R&B Single
Layefa — “6:35”; Amaeya — “How Do You?”; Amma — “I Love You”; Tems — “What You Need”; Magixx — “Winter & Summer”; Tiwa Savage — “You4Me”
Best Rap Single
Odumodublvck — “2:02 PM in London”; Blaqbonez — “ACL”; Dremo — “Man2Man”; PDSTRN — “Moshood”; Tuff King — “Nkemakonam”; Zaylevelten & Mavo — “Wuse Tu”; Zhus Jdo — “John Wick”
Best Alternative Song
Luwa.mp4 ft Jeleel! — “CYK Baddie”; Sewà — “Lagos Lovin”; Wizard Chan — “Oliver”; Binde — “Omo to Sexy”; WAVE$TAR — “Prada Baby”; Obongjayar — “Sweet Danger”; Chief Priest ft BoyPee & Zoro Swagbag — “Summer Adina”
Best Vocal Performance (Female)
Layefa — “6:35”; Amaeya — “How Do You?”; Sewà — “Lagos Lovin”; Qing Madi — “Scum Bag”; Liya — “Skin to Skin”; Tiwa Savage — “You4Me”
Best Vocal Performance (Male)
Adekunle Gold — “I’m Not Done”; Flavour — “Orente”; Magixx — “Winter and Summer”; Odeal — “Patience”; Syemca — “Love Egbugomo”; Tay Iwar — “Bad Belle”
Best R&B Album
Kunmie — Before We Became Strangers; Fola — Catharsis; Qing Madi — I Am the Blueprint; Tems — Love Is a Kingdom; Tay Iwar — Reflection Station; Tiwa Savage — This One Is Personal
Best Alternative Album
SDC — Afrika Magik; Sewà — Detox; BOJ — Duplicity; Wizard Chan — Healers Chapel; Scottyolorin — Olorin Pack; Zaylevelten — Then 1t Got Crazy
Producer of the Year
Magicsticks; P.Priime; RAGEE; Sarz; Tempoe
Music Video of the Year
Director Pink — “10 Kilo” by Davido; Dammy Twitch — “With You” by Davido & Omah Lay; TG Omori — “Afroculture” by Flavour ft Baaba Maal; Jyde Ajala — Wizard Chan; DK — “Bundle by Bundle” by Burna Boy; Meji Alabi — “Who’s Dat Girl” by Ayra Starr ft Rema
Best Collaboration
CKay ft Mavo — “Body (Danz)”; Mavo ft WAVE$TAR — “Escaladizzy”; Poco Lee, Shoday & Rahman Jago — “Hey Jago”; Fola ft Kizz Daniel — “Lost”; Odumodublvck ft Victony — “Pity This Boy”; Davido ft Omah Lay — “With You”; Mr Eazi & King Promise — “See What We’ve Done”; Chief Priest ft Spyki — “Finally”
Best Street-Hop Artiste
Famous Pluto; Kashcoming; Poco Lee; Seyi Vibez; Shallipopi; Tuff King; Rybeena
Afrobeats Single of the Year
Rema — “Fun”; Asake & Wizkid — “Jogodo”; Shallipopi — “Laho”; Davido & Omah Lay — “With You”; Fola — “You”; Burna Boy — “Bundle by Bundle”
Lyricist on the Roll
Blaqbonez — “ACL”; Dremo — “Man2Man”; Modenine — “If You Like Gym” with Odumodublvck; PDSTRN — “Moshood”; Ycee — “Man2Man (Ycee Remix)” with Dremo
Best Inspirational Single
Sunmisola Agbebi ft Yinka Okeleye — “Amioluwa”; Lawrence Oyor — “Favour”; Sinach — “Idinma (You Are Good)”; EmmaOMG — “Korin Iyin (I Will Praise You)”; Gaise Baba ft Lawrence Oyor — “No Turning Back 2”; Mercy Chinwo — “We Move”
Headies Viewers’ Choice
Ayra Starr — “Hot Body”; Davido ft Omah Lay — “With You”; Rema — “Baby (Is It a Crime)”; Fola — “You”; Wizkid & Asake — “Jogodo”; Kunmie — “Arike”; Mavo ft WAVE$TAR — “Escaladizzy”
Best West African Artiste
Black Sherif; Himra; KiDi; King Promise; Moliy; Wally B. Seck; Stonebwoy
Best East African Artiste
Abigail Chams; Bien; Bruce Melodie; Harmonize; Joshua Baraka
Best North African Artiste
Balti; Dystinct; Marwan Moussa; Soolking; Tul8te
Best Central African Artiste
Fally Ipupa; Ferré Gola; Héritier Watanabe; Hiro; Innoss’B; Locko
Best Southern African Artiste
Ciza; DJ Maphorisa; Jazzwrld; Kabza De Small; Tyla; Uncle Waffles
Best African Diaspora-Canadian Artiste
Debby Friday — “Lipsync”; Tôme — “CC” ft Alpha P; Bolu Ajibade — “Diana” with Friyie; Nonso Amadi — “Dive In”; Rooky Kamiz — “Deeper”; Tobi — “Out the Mud”
International Artiste of the Year
Ciara; Dave; Gunna; Jazmine Sullivan; Shenseea; Tiakola
Best Rap Album
Tuff King — Black Sheepizen (The 13th Disciple); A-Q — GE3 (The Beginning); Erigga — G.O.A.T; Jeriq — King; Blaqbonez — No Excuses; Odumodublvck — The Machine Is Coming
Best Original Song for Visual Media
Osas Okonyon & Abbey Wonder — “All My Love” from Evi; Funke Akindele & Tolu Obanro — “Behind the Scenes” from Behind the Scenes; Oscar Heman-Ackah & 2Baba — “Save Me” from To Kill a Monkey; WurlD & Liya — “Only in Lagos” from Christmas in Lagos
Next Rated
Fido; Fola; Llona; Mavo; Shoday
Best Performer (Live)
Adekunle Gold — Live at the National Theatre, Lagos; Asake — Red Bull Symphonic; Ayra Starr — Global Citizen Festival 2025; Johnny Drille — Johnny’s Room Live 6; Ruger — Live at Indigo at The O2, London, 2025
Digital Artiste of the Year
Asake; Ayra Starr; BNXN; Chella; Fola; Mavo; Seyi Vibez; Wizkid
Song of the Year
Kunmie — “Arike”; Poco Lee, Shoday & Rahman Jago — “Hey Jago”; Ayra Starr — “Hot Body”; Fido — “Joy Is Coming”; Asake & Wizkid — “MMS”; Davido & Omah Lay — “With You”
Afrobeats Album of the Year
Davido — 5ive; BNXN — Captain; Omah Lay — Clarity of Mind; Adekunle Gold — Fuji; Wizkid — Morayo; Burna Boy — No Sign of Weakness
Album of the Year
Fola — Catharsis; Omah Lay — Clarity of Mind; Erigga — G.O.A.T; Wizkid — Morayo; Odumodublvck — The Machine Is Coming; Tiwa Savage — This One Is Personal; Burna Boy — No Sign of Weakness
Best Female Artiste
Ayra Starr; Qing Madi; Sewà; Tems; Teni; Tiwa Savage
Best Male Artiste
Adekunle Gold; Asake; Fola; Mavo; Rema; Wizkid; Burna Boy
What the nominations tell us
The 18th Headies nominations may still have room for the familiar names, but the numbers tell a different story.
Fola’s 10 nominations and Omah Lay’s eight have put both artistes ahead of the three stars who have dominated conversations around Afrobeats for years. Mavo’s seven nominations also show how quickly some of the newer generation are moving into major award conversations.
At the same time, Wizkid, Davido and Burna Boy remain in several of the night’s biggest categories, meaning the old order has not disappeared.
For the women, the five-nomination tie between Ayra Starr and Tiwa Savage provides another interesting meeting point between generations.
The winners will not be known until the ceremony in Toronto on October 25. For now, however, the nomination list has already made one thing clear: the 18th Headies will not only be about the stars who built the Afrobeats era, but also about the artistes increasingly positioned to define what comes next.
