TOP 10 MOST FAMOUS NIGERIAN MUSIC ARTISTS IN 2023

The Nigerian music industry is currently one of the fastest-growing industries in Africa and the world at large. Due to the rapid competition in the industry, it isn’t easy to pick out any specific musician singlehandedly as the best.

However, there are thousands of musicians, particularly in the country, who are extremely popular in their careers and well-established and equally upcoming artists, too.
After several findings and thorough research, we have been able to provide the top 10 most famous Nigerian music artists in 2023:

1. ASAKE

Asake is currently one of the most popular, prolific, and one of the most successful music artists as well in Nigeria as of 2023. Asake came into the limelight shortly after he was signed into one of the top-ranking record labels, popularly known as YBNL Nation in Nigeria.
Asake began to drop massive hit singles and top chart Singles and Albums. No artist had been able to create a bigger proportion of tracks on Spotify’s (Top 50) Nigerian song playlists than Asake; that’s basically one of the reasons he is distinguished as the best musician in Nigeria and the most famous as well.

2. REMA

Rema is also one of the most famous musicians who had a breakthrough in the Nigerian music industry. He’s currently signed to the popular record label held by the Big Bang Boss DON JAZZY of Marvin Records.
Rema was also picked as one of three major performers to perform for half-time in the 2023 NBA All-Star Game.
His Mega Hit song titled “Calm Down,” in which he featured Selena Gomez, recently surpassed a lot of other artists’ songs like Ckay, Olamide, davido e.t.c as the country’s most viewed music video on YouTube.
Aside from the African giant Burna Boy, he is also a fast-rising superstar and literally the only African artist with a gold-certified album in (France).
Rema’s “Rave & Roses” generated billions of plays across all digital streaming platforms, establishing him as one of the most popular and best musicians in Nigeria in 2023.

3. DAVIDO

Ever since he rose to fame after dropping the song “Dami Duro” in 2012, Davido’s dominance in the African music industry due to his prowess has been unmatched.
His song “Fall” ranked over 270 million views as of November 2023; this has secured his place, coupled with the “Timeless” Album with millions of views all around the world, and has cemented his place as one of the most popular artists in Nigeria.
Davido also featured in the FIFA World Cup soundtrack “Higher-Higher” before performing in the Qatar ceremonial tournament.

4. WIZKID

Ayodeji Ibrahim Balogun, popularly known as Wizkid, began his music career in 2011 with OJB, recording his first song with 7 tracked Albulm featuring Lil Prinz.
Wizkid dropped his first single, “Holla at Your Boy,” over a decade ago before his ‘Superstar Album in 2011. He has been able to successfully secure various international collaborations with other high-profile artists like Chris Brown, Beyonce, Drake, Trey Songs, Major Lazer, Justin Bieber, and many others.

His hit Album “Made in Lagos” has garnered over 300 million views as of September 2023.

5. BURNA BOY

Burna Boy (African giant) is a very popular Nigerian musician well known for his chart-topping and back-to-back hit singles and creative Albums not just limited to Nigeria but globally.
He’s the first African to obtain the gold certificate record in (France) after it was recorded, he filled out the 21,000-capacity farm arena in Atlanta, USA.

This has contributed to Burna Boy being the first African act to receive RIAA certifications for songs from three different albums and also to obtain a gold-certified record in France, as he sold out the 21,000-capacity State Farm Arena in Atlanta, USA.
Burna Boy was also able to indispensably sell out the 15,000-capacity Hallenstadion in Zurich in Switzerland and the 13,000-capacity 3 Arena in Dublin in Ireland twice. This is inevitably a huge capacity not to be overlooked.

6. KIZZ DANIEL

Oluwatobiloba Daniel Anidugbe is well known as Kizz daniel. He was formally known as Kiss Daniel before he changed to KizzDaniel due to some issues that arose from his former record label, G-WORLD ENTERTAINMENT.
Kizz Daniel is currently the CEO of “Fly Boy Inc.” one of the most popular record labels in Nigeria.

He’s been able to produce hits back-to-back. He has also released a chart-topping single titled “Buga,” which drew a lot of attention from music fans all over the world, including the president of Liberia, George Weah, as he took part in the TikTok and Instagram dance challenge.

The song has garnered over 146 million views as of October 2023.
This contributed hugely to the rapid growth of his music career, making him one of the most popular Nigerian music artists.

7. AYRA STARR

Oyinkansola Aderibigbe Sarah, popularly known as Ayra Starr, has distinguished herself as one of the most popular Nigerian artists as she continues to produce hit sounds ever since she was signed to the MARVIN Record label.
Ayra Starr rose to fame after she debuted her EP titled “Away,” which was surprisingly one of the top 20 songs on the Billboard chart for several weeks. Her song was ranked fourth on the “Turntable” list of 50 Nigerians and seventeen on the US Triller Global chart.
She’s currently one of the most popular musicians in Nigeria, as she recently won the best female artist in Nigeria at the last Headies Award.

8. FIREBOY DML

The Nigerian singer, popularly known as Fireboy Dml, is one of the most famous artists in Nigeria. He signed to the YBNL Nation and has featured a lot of other artists, like Madonna and Ed Sheeran, in his hit singles and album debuts.
He’s well known for his hit song titled “Peru,” in which he featured Ed Sheeran. As of October 2023, The song has garnered over 170 million views online.

9. TIWA SAVAGE

Tiwa Savage is a vivid name that leaves a lot of people dazed, as she is also one of the most famous Nigerian music artists who has been able to build an empire of her own.

She was formally signed to MARVIN RECORDS before she left and is still currently signed to Sony record labels. She has been able to create a stronger reckoning foundation for herself through her devotion to creating good songs that earned her millions of streams on all music platforms.

Tiwa Savage is not only a famous musician, but she’s also distinguished for her exception in being a brand ambassador for several companies and gadgets like Pepsi, Infinix, and others.
Tiwa Savage isn’t just a popular Nigerian artist; she’s a mother a d and an icon.

10. PORTABLE

As astonishing as this could be, Portable is obviously one of the most popular music artists in Nigeria. Ranging from his controversial videos to his popular collaborations (with the YBNL BOSS, Olamise), he has gained a lot of fame either way.

Portables have, over the years, dropped several songs that include an EP and Album with so many shots accorded singles. As of 2023, he’s one of the most famous music artists not just in Nigeria but in other countries too. He added that he would be going on an international music tour soon via his Instagram page, which is to take place in some months.

In conclusion,

it could be very competitive to pull out just a few out of a huge amount of various artist with diverse and unique talent of their own.
However, what each and every one of them has chosen to create and the path in which they choose to effect or exact their uniqueness is all that matters. It is safe to say that everyone matters and is the best in the Nigerian music industry.