The Music of Black Origin, also known as the MOBO Awards, a prestigious celebration of music’s finest talents, has once again spotlighted the incredible achievements of African artistes on the global stage.
Held on Wednesday, February 19 in Newcastle, United Kingdom, this year’s spotlight shines brightly on Nigeria’s very own songstress Oyinkansola Sarah Aderibigbe professionally known as Ayra Starr, who made history by taking home not one, but two coveted awards: ‘Best African Music Act’ and ‘Best International Act’.
She became the first female to win the Best International Act and the first female to win the Best African Music Act prize in 16 years. This remarkable double win solidifies her position as one of Africa’s most exciting and promising young artistes.
Starr defeated other music heavyweights including Beyoncé, GloRilla, Kendrick Lamar, Latto, Megan Thee Stallion, Nicki Minaj, Tems, Tyla and Asake – who were in contention of the ‘Best International Act’ accolade.
In the ‘Best African Music Act’ category, she beat Grammy winner, Tems and Grammy nominated Rema, Asake, Shallipopi, Tyla (South Africa); Bnxn & Ruger, Odumodublvck, King Promise (Ghana) and Uncle Waffles (South Africa).
Reacting to her historic wins, the Away, 19 & Dangerous hitmaker expressed gratitude to her fans and the music industry. “Winning these awards means so much to me. I want to thank my fans, my team, and everyone who has supported my journey. This is for African music and for all the women pushing boundaries,” she said.
Other notable winners at the event include Nigerian-British rapper, Darkoo, who took home the ‘Best Female Act’, while Central Cee won the ‘Best Male Act’ award. 90sbabyshow, the three-man podcast, won the ‘Best Media Personality’ category, while the Nigerian-born singer Odeal, claimed the ‘Best Newcomer’ award.
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With these wins and other plethora of awards and nominations for her craft, Starr continues to solidify her reputation as one of Africa’s most influential and groundbreaking artistes on the global stage.
Although she started as a model in 2018, modeling for Quove Models, a Lagos-based modeling agency. She also modeled for companies such as Mazelle Studio, Complete Fashion Magazine and Esperanza Woman.
In 2019, she began posting covers of songs by artistes like Andra Day and 2Face Idibia online. In December same year, she uploaded an original song called Damage on her Instagram page, which was listened to by thousands of people including label executive Collins Ajereh better known as Don Jazzy, thus led to her first recording contract with Mavin Records.
Under Don Jazzy’s Mavin Records, Starr became a viral sensation after releasing her hit track Bloody Samaritan in 2021. She achieved mainstream international recognition in 2022, with the release of her song Rush.
The song charted in several territories, including Switzerland, Ireland and the United Kingdom, where it peaked at number 24. It earned her a nomination at the 66th Annual Grammy Awards for Best African Music Performance.
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