HEADIES 2026: Davido, Wizkid, Cubana Chief Priest, Burna Boy, nominated (FULL LIST)

The Headies organisers have released the full list of nominees for the 18th edition of Nigeria’s foremost music awards, with Davido, Wizkid, Burna Boy, Odumodublvck, Ayra Starr, Adekunle Gold and socialite Cubana Chief Priest among those nominated.

The organisers published the list on their official website on Tuesday, ahead of the awards ceremony scheduled for Toronto, Canada, on 25 October.

Davido, Wizkid and Burna Boy will compete for honours across some of the major categories, including Afrobeats Album of the Year, Best Male Artiste, Song of the Year, Afrobeats Single of the Year, Best Collaboration and Producer of the Year.

Davido and Omah Lay’s “With You” will compete against Ayra Starr’s “Hot Body”, Fido’s “Joy Is Coming” and Asake and Wizkid’s “MMS” for Song of the Year. The artistes will also compete in other categories, including Afrobeats Single of the Year, Best Recording of the Year, Best Headies Collaboration and Headies Viewers’ Choice.

This edition also gives emerging acts a strong presence, with Fido, Fola, Llona, Mavo and Shoday competing in the Next Rated category.

Fola earned multiple nominations, including Afrobeats Single of the Year for “You”, Best R&B Album for “Catharsis”, Best Recording of the Year, Digital Artiste of the Year, Best Male Artiste, Best Headies Collaboration for “Lost” featuring Kizz Daniel, and Songwriter of the Year.

The organisers will also honour entertainment executive Cecil Hammond with a Special Recognition Award, while Congolese music star Awilo Longomba will receive a Hall of Fame honour.

The awards first left Nigeria in 2022 when the organisers held the 15th edition in Atlanta, United States. They returned to Atlanta for the 16th edition in 2023, then brought the ceremony back to Lagos for the 17th edition in 2025 under the theme “Back to Base.”

Full list of nominees 

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

No11

Priesst

OG Abbah

 

Best Inspirational Single

Amioluwa — Sunmisola Agbebi ft Yinka Okeleye

Favour — Lawrence Oyor

Idinma (You Are Good) — Sinach

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 Fame

Awilo Longomba

 

Special Recognition Awards 

Cecil Hammond 

 

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 P

Bolu 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