Afrobeat, as a genre, has become a global phenomenon, and every year, a few Afrobeat songs leave the Nigerian waters and cross into international waters to become music sensations. These songs have received more recognition than they have at home and have also opened doors to a new audience for the Afrobeat genre and the artists who sang them. In this article, we list 7 songs that became global sensations.
- Ku Lo Sa
Ku Lo Sa by Oxlade currently sits at 432 million streams on Spotify, thanks to its global attention. The song first gained traction on TikTok and quickly went viral internationally, becoming one of the staple Afrobeats songs known globally.
- Essence
Essence by Wizkid featuring Tems received so much global recognition that it received a Grammy nomination at the 64th Grammy Awards for “Best Global Music Performance.” The song currently has over 366 million streams on Spotify and continues to receive attention to this day.
- Calm Down
Calm Down is the song that changed Rema’s status into that of a global superstar. It first trended on TikTok and then gained recognition among Asian (specifically Indian) audiences, leading to it becoming a viral hit. The song earned a Top 3 spot on the Billboard Hot 100, and while the original track has over 700 million streams, the remix featuring Selena Gomez currently sits at over 1.8 billion streams on Spotify.
- Me & U
Tems is a global darling, and several of her songs have received more global success and attention than they did in Nigeria. Her most recent solo global success is her hit track “Me & U,” which currently has over 338 million streams on Spotify. The song not only went viral on TikTok, but it also became a popular track noticed by international celebrities.
- Rush
“Rush” by Ayra Starr first gained popularity on TikTok and quickly reached number 24 on the UK singles chart before climbing the charts across Europe and Africa. The song also received a Grammy nomination at the 66th Annual Grammy Awards for Best African Music Performance. It currently boasts over 500 million streams on Spotify.
- Love Nwantiti
Love Nwantiti by CKay is another Afrobeat song that gained recognition after going viral on TikTok. It also became the first African song to cross one billion Spotify streams. The song also reached the top 30 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and the top 2 spot on the Billboard Global 200 chart. It currently sits at over 1 billion streams on Spotify.
- Last Last
Burna Boy’s status as a global superstar was cemented with the success of Last Last. The song received global recognition as one of the biggest Afrobeats songs. The song was nominated for ‘Best Global Music Performance’ at the 2023 Grammys and is currently at over 500 million streams.
