Grammy-winning singer Damini Ogulu, popularly known as Burna Boy, has achieved another career milestone, becoming Africa’s highest-grossing touring artiste after his I Told Them world tour earned $30.5m.
The tour ran between November 2023 and March 2024, covering major cities across Europe and North America.
According to figures released by touring analytics platform Touring Data, the revenue came from 302,801 tickets sold across 22 shows, underscoring Burna Boy’s growing influence on the global concert circuit.
Organised to support his seventh studio album, I Told Them, released in August 2023, the tour featured stops in London, Paris, Manchester, Berlin, Antwerp, Chicago, and Houston.
A major highlight came in London, where Burna Boy performed at the London Stadium before 58,973 fans, grossing over $6m from the single show. The concert has since been recognised as the highest-grossing one-off performance by an African artiste.
The tour also included a show at the Stade de France in Paris, where more than 43,000 tickets were sold, alongside several sold-out arena dates across Europe and the United States. Touring Data reported an average ticket sale rate of about 86 per cent.
Further analysis showed a near-even revenue split, with Europe and North America each contributing over $15m to the total earnings.
Popularly known as the African Giant, Burna Boy has continued to push African music to global audiences.
In recent years, he has sold out major venues, won international awards, and headlined festivals across continents.
‘Tour backlash’
The record-breaking tour success comes weeks after Burna Boy faced backlash in November during his No Sign Of Weakness tour in the United States, following incidents that sparked criticism from fans and led to the cancellation of some shows.
The controversy began on November 12 at the Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, Colorado, where the singer stopped his performance to confront a fan in the front row who appeared to be sleeping.
He demanded her removal before continuing the show, a move that drew widespread criticism online.
The fan, later identified as Chaltu Jateny, said she attended the concert while grieving the loss of her child’s father and had paid for her ticket. She wrote on X, “I have been mentally, physically, and emotionally drained… I came to his show to put a smile on my face.”
Videos from Burna Boy’s Houston concert on November 22 later surfaced online, showing several empty seats at the venue. Another clip of a woman sleeping during the performance reignited debates about the singer’s attitude towards fans.
Critics also referenced earlier comments made by Burna Boy during a social media livestream, where he said, “Did I tell you all to be my fans? I am only looking for fans who have money,” linking the remark to the backlash and reported low turnout.
As the tour progressed, cancellations followed, with The Guardian confirming that two US dates scheduled for November 28 and December 1 were officially cancelled.
The situation drew reactions from public figures. American rapper Eminem wrote, “Yo, this is not cool,” while American streamer Ryan Garcia said, “Burna Boy’s shows have become empty as a result of his attitude. Without people, he isn’t a superstar. Life can humble anyone quickly.”
Weeks later, Burna Boy addressed the controversy during a sold-out concert at the 19,800-capacity Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, where he told fans he was performing while being “cancelled.”
“This show has been emotional,” he said. “Because tell me who else has gone on tour while being cancelled.”
5th Grammy album nomination
Earlier in November, Burna Boy also reached another career milestone after becoming the first Nigerian artiste to earn five Grammy nominations in album categories.
His latest project, No Sign of Weakness (2025), received a nomination for Best Global Music Album at the 2026 Grammy Awards.
He is competing alongside projects including Sounds of Kumbha by Siddhant Bhatia, Éclairer le Monde (Light the World) by Youssou N’Dour, Mind Explosion (50th Anniversary Tour Live) by Shakti, Chapter III: We Return to Light by Anoushka Shankar featuring Alam Khan and Sarathy Korwar, and Caetano e Bethânia Ao Vivo by Brazilian legends Caetano Veloso and Maria Bethânia.
Burna Boy also previously featured on “Loved by You,” a track on Justin Bieber’s Justice (Triple Chucks Deluxe), which earned a Grammy album nomination in 2022.
His earlier Grammy-nominated albums include African Giant (2019), Twice As Tall (2020), Love, Damini (2022), I Told Them (2023), and now No Sign of Weakness (2025).
For the 2026 awards, Burna Boy also earned a nomination in the Best African Music Performance category for his single Love, alongside Davido for With You featuring Omah Lay, and Ayra Starr and Wizkid for Gimme Dat.
They are joined by Eddy Kenzo and Mehran Matin for Hope & Love, as well as South African singer Tyla for Push 2 Start.
With the two nominations, Burna Boy now has 13 Grammy nominations in total, having previously won Best Global Music Album for Twice As Tall at the 63rd Grammy Awards.
The winners will be announced on Sunday, February 1, 2026, at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.
