Burna Boy Becomes First African Artist to Reach 100 Million Spotify Streams on Three Albums

Face2Face Africa reported that Afrobeat artist Burna Boy had become the first African artist to have at least three albums streamed 100 million times on Spotify.

Burna Boy’s last three albums, “African Giant,” “Outside,” and “Twice As Tall,” all reached the 100- million mark appreciation from listeners, officially making him the most listened to Afrobeats artist.

The Nigerian artist, whose real name is Damini Ebunoluwa Ogulu, is now up there with his fellow counterparts, Wizkid and Davido, who have also reached 100 million streams on Spotify on at least one of their albums.

Together, Burna Boy, Wizkid, and Davido are currently Africa’s most recognizable musicians globally.

After receiving recognition for his album, Burna was awarded his first Grammy, “Twice As Tall,” which was awarded the “Best Global Music Album” at this past Grammy Awards. He gave all the praise and credit to his mom, Bose Ogulu.

Music runs in the Ogulu family, as “Mama Burna’s” father, Benson Idonije, happened to be a popular radio host and Afrobeat legend and Fela Kuti’s first band manager.

Bose Ogulu, also known as “Mama Burna,” also got credit for her work amid the 2020 pandemic. The momager co-executively produced the “Twice As Tall” album for her son and released and promoted the album. 

Bose received her Bachelor of Arts in foreign languages and a Masters of Arts in translation from the University of Port Harcourt. She later worked as a translator for the Federation of West African Chambers of Commerce before becoming her son’s manager.

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This year, Burna Boy was also named as one of the 2021 International Power Players by Billboard.

The award recognized industry leaders nominated by both their companies and peers before being selected by Billboard’s editors. 

Individuals honored include label executives, music publishers, independent entrepreneurs, and more.