Davido, Wizkid and Burna Boy are among the biggest names leading the 2026 Headies nominations. The organisers announced the nominees on Tuesday, August 25.
The 18th Headies Awards will take place in Canada. The ceremony will feature both voting and non-voting categories. Several new-school stars also earned major nominations.
Davido’s With You with Omah Lay made the list in five major categories. Wizkid also earned multiple nominations for Morayo, MMS and Jogodo. Burna Boy’s No Sign of Weakness and Bundle by Bundle also got strong recognition.
Meanwhile, Fola, Mavo, Fido, Llona and Shoday are competing for Next Rated. Fola also picked up nominations in several major categories. The full list of nominees is below.
Song of the Year
- Arike — Kunmie
- Hey Jago — Poco Lee, Shoday & Rahman Jago
- Hot Body — Ayra Starr
- Joy Is Coming — Fido
- MMS — Asake & Wizkid
- With You — Davido & Omah Lay
Afrobeats Single of the Year
- Fun — Rema
- Jogodo — Asake & Wizkid
- Laho — Shallipopi
- With You — Davido & Omah Lay
- You — Fola
- Bundle by Bundle — Burna Boy
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)
Best R&B Album
- Before We Became Strangers — Kunmie
- Catharsis — Fola
- I Am the Blueprint — Qing Madi
- Love Is a Kingdom — Tems
- Reflection Station — Tay Iwar
- This One Is Personal — Tiwa Savage
Best Recording of the Year
- Arike — Kunmie
- How Do You? — Amaeya
- Baby (Is It a Crime) — Rema
- Coping Mechanism — Omah Lay & Elmah
- With You — Davido & Omah Lay
- You — Fola
Best Alternative Album
- Afrika Magik — SDC
- Detox — Sewa
- Duplicity — BOJ
- Healers Chapel — Wizard Chan
- Olorin Pack — Scottyolorin
- Then 1t Got Crazy — Zaylevelten
Digital Artiste of the Year
- Asake
- Ayra Starr
- BNXN
- Chella
- Fola
- Mavo
- Seyi Vibez
- Wizkid
- Next Rated
- Fido
- Fola
- Llona
- Mavo
- Shoday
Afrobeats Album of the Year
- 5ive — Davido
- Captain — BNXN
- Clarity of Mind — Omah Lay
- Fuji — Adekunle Gold
- Morayo — Wizkid
- No Sign of Weakness — Burna Boy
Music Video of the Year
- Director Pink — 10 Kilo — Davido
- Dammy Twitch — With You — Davido
- TG Omori — Afroculture — Flavour ft Baaba Maal
- Jyde Ajala — Wizard Chan
- DK — Bundle by Bundle — Burna Boy
Best Female Artiste
- Ayra Starr
- Qing Madi
- Sewa
- Tems
- Teni
- Tiwa Savage
Best Male Artiste
- Adekunle Gold
- Asake
- Fola
- Mavo
- Rema
- Wizkid
- Burna Boy
Rookie of the Year
- Amma
- Danpapa Gta
- Firstklaz
- Kidd Carder
- No11Priesst
- OG Abbah
Best Inspirational Single
- Amioluwa — Sunmisola Agbebi ft Yinka Okeleye
- Favour — Lawrence OyorIdinma (You Are Good) — Sinach
- Korin Iyin (I Will Praise You) — Emma
- Korin Iyin (I Will Praise You) — EmmaOMG
- No Turning Back 2 — Gaise Baba ft Lawrence Oyor
- We Move — Mercy Chinwo
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 Vocal Performance (Female)
- Layefa — 6:35
- Amaeya — How Do You?
- Sewa — Lagos Lovin
- Qing Madi — Scum Bag
- Liya — Skin to Skin
- Tiwa Savage — You4Me
- Hall of FameAwilo Longomba
Best Street-Hop Artiste
- Famous Pluto — Na Scra
- Kashcoming — All My Money
- Poco Lee — Hey Jago ft Shoday and Rahman Jago
- Seyi Vibez — Shaolin
- Shallipopi — Laho
- Tuff King — Nkemakonam
- Rybeena — Gaddem ft Shoday
International Artiste of the Year
- Ciara
- Dave
- Gunna
- Jazmine Sullivan
- Shenseea
- Tiakola
Writer of the Year
- Adekunle Kosoko (Adekunle Gold) — Many People
- Anthony Ebuka Victor (Victony) — Cough Syrup with BNXN
- Fuayefika Maxwell (Wizard Chan) — Time Traveler
- Odunlami Afolarin Temiloluwa (Fola) — Who Does That?
- Oluwabukunmi Ariyibi Peter (Kunmie)
- Peace Chidinma Amaefula (Amaeya) — How Do You?
Best Headies Collaboration
- CKay ft Mavo — Body (Danz)
- Mavo ft Wavestar — 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 and King Promise — See What We’ve Done
- Chief Priest ft Spyki — Finally
African Diaspora-Canadian Artiste
- Debby Friday — Lipsync
- Tôme — CC ft Alpha PBolu Ajibade — Diana with Friyie
- Nonso Amadi — Dive In
- Rooky Kamiz — Deeper
- Tobi — Out the Mud
East African Artiste
- Abigail Chams (Tanzania)
- Bien (Kenya)Bruce Melodie (Rwanda)
- Harmonize (Tanzania)
- Joshua Baraka (Uganda)
West African Artiste
- Black Sherif (Ghana)
- Himra (Côte d’Ivoire)
- KiDi (Ghana)
- King Promise (Ghana)
- Moliy (Ghana)
- Wally B. Seck (Senegal)
- Stonebwoy (Ghana)
Best Alternative Song
- CYK Baddie — Luwa.mp4 ft Jeleel!
- Lagos Lovin — Sewa
- Oliver — Wizard Chan
- Omo to Sexy — Binde
- Prada Baby — Wavestar
- Sweet Danger — Obongjayar
- Summer Adina — Chief Priest ft BoyPee & Zoro Swagbag
North African Artiste
- Balti (Tunisia)
- Dystinct (Morocco)
- Marwan Moussa (Egypt)
- Soolking (Algeria)
- Tul8te (Egypt)
Central African Artiste
- Fally Ipupa (DR Congo)
- Ferré Gola (DR Congo)
- Héritier Watanabe (DR Congo)
- Hiro (DR Congo)
- Innoss’B (DR Congo)
- Locko (Cameroon)
Rap Single
- 2:02 PM in London — Odumodublvck
- ACi — Blaqbonez
- Man2Man — Dremo
- Moshood — PDSTRN
- Nkemakonam — Tuff King
- Wuse Tu — Zaylevelten, Mavo
- John Wick — Zhus Jdo
R&B Single
- 6:35 — Layefa
- How Do You? — Amaeya
- I Love You — Amma
- What You Need — Tems
- Winter & Summer — Magixx
- You4Me — Tiwa Savage
Producer of the Year
- Magicsticks — Jogodo by Asake & Wizkid and Real, Vol. 1 by Asake & Wizkid
- P.Priime — MMS by Asake & Wizkid, Baby (Is It a Crime) by Rema, Billionaires Club by Olamide, Darkoo & Wizkid
- Ragee — Hot Body by Ayra Starr
- Sarz — Hot Body by Ayra Starr and Who’s Dat Girl by Ayra Starr ft Rema
- Tempoe — With You by Davido ft Omah Lay and SMH by Joeboy
Viewers’ Choice
- Ayra Starr — Hot Body
- Davido — With You ft Omah Lay
- Rema — Baby (Is It a Crime)
- Fola — You
- Wizkid — Jogodo with Asake
- Kunmie — Arike
- Mavo —- Escaladizzy ft Wavestar
Original Song for Visual Media
- All My Love — Osas Okonyon & Abbey Wonder, from Evi
- Behind the Scenes — Funke Akindele & Tolu Obanro, from Behind the Scenes
- Save Me — Oscar Heman-Ackah & 2Baba, from To Kill a Monkey
- Only in Lagos — WurlD & Liya, from Christmas in Lagos
Lyricist on the Roll
- Blaqbonez — ACi
- Dremo — Man2Man
- Modenine — If You Like Gym with Odumodublvck
- PDSTRN — Moshood
- Ycee — Man2Man (Ycee Remix) with Dremo
The 18th Headies Awards will be held in Canada, with nominees competing across the various voting and non-voting categories.
