Burna Boy, Rema, Adekunle Gold Grab Headlines 

He may not have won a Grammy this year, the self-proclaimed African Giant, Burna Boy is still making international strides with his music. The UEFA Champions League announced last week that the ‘Last Last’ crooner will be co-headlining the tournament’s 2023 final kick-off, sponsored by Pepsi MAX on June 10 at Istanbul’s Atatürk Olympic Stadium.

As part of the promotional activities for the kickoff show, Burna Boy teamed up with Pepsi MAX ambassadors, world champion Leo Messi, reigning UCL champion Vini Jr and Euro-winning Lionesses star Leah Williamson; to encourage fans to showcase their best dance moves or ball skills by posting them to TikTok using the hashtag #PepsiKickOffShow.

Rema whose ‘Calm Down’ song has become a global anthem was in the news for two reasons. First, a video of unveiled Iranian girls inTehran’s Ekbatan neighbourhood dancing to the remix of his song ‘Calm Down’ featuring Selena Gomez went viral. However, the girls were later detained for dancing in public, an act that is banned in Iran.

Secondly, Rema and Selena Gomez’s ‘Calm Down’ is expected to displace Wizkid and Tems ‘Essence’ in the top 10 on this week’s Hot 100. ‘Essence’ is the highest charting lead Nigerian song of all time. This possibility threw his fans into a frenzy as they hushed about the creativity and passion of the music star born Divine Ikubor.

Last week, Adekunle Gold made his Def Jam Recordings debut with ‘Party No Dey Stop’, featuring Zinoleesky. His international deal with the recording company is facilitated by Def Jam Recordings CEO Tunji Balogun, who is keen on increasing the African roster of the label. The label will also release Gold’s fifth album scheduled for July.