Nigerian music superstars BurnaBoy, Tems, Rema, Asake, and Ayra Starr have been nominated for the 2025 MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs).
According to CBS and MTV, organisers of the event, this year’s MTV VMAs will be held on Sept. 7, at the UBS Arena in Elmont, New York, and will be aired on CBS.
Nigerian artists clinched six out of the seven nominations for the Best Afrobeats category, with South African music sensation Tyla being the only nominee outside Nigeria.
All seven nominees in the Best Afrobeats category reflect the genre’s global reach and cultural impact.
Tyla joins the list of double nominees with “Push 2 Start”, recognised in both Best Afrobeats and Best Choreography.
Asake earned two nominations for “Active” with Travis Scott and “Get It Right” with “Tems, both in the Best Afrobeats category.
Burna Boy also gets two nods — “TaTaTa” featuring Travis Scott (Best Afrobeats) and “Higher” for Video for Good category.
Ayra Starr earned a nomination for Best Push Performance with her emotionally charged single “Last Heartbreak Song” featuring Giveon.
Also in the category are Moliy, Silent Addy, Skillibeng & Shenseea (“Shake It To The Max (FLY) (Remix)”) and Rema’s “Baby Is It A Crime.”
Wizkid’s hit “Piece Of My Heart”, featuring Brent Faiyaz also got a nod in the category, representing a diverse and vibrant showcase of African artistry on the world stage.
This year, Lady Gaga leads the VMAs nominations with 12 nods, looking to add to her 18 VMAs wins, with nominations in Video of the Year, Artist of the Year, Best Album and more.
Bruno Mars follows with 11 nominations, largely boosted by his collaboration with Gaga, while Kendrick Lamar secured 10 nominations.
The VMAs, now in existence for over four decades, celebrates the best music videos of the year with history-making performances, iconic tributes, culture-defining moments and the biggest surprises from the world’s biggest superstars.
It recognises artists whose cultural impact and work during the last 12 months have revolutionized the music industry and sparked global conversations.
This year’s edition will celebrate music videos and songs released between June 20, 2024, and June 18, 2025, and includes new fan-voted categories: Best Country and Best Pop Artist.
NAN / Foluke Ibitomi