Muheeb Mashood reports
The Nigeria-Grammy winner and global Afrobeat star Damini Ebunoluwa Ogulu, popularly known as Burna Boy, staged an electrifying performance in the UEFA Champions League final match between Manchester City and Inter Milan Saturday night at Ataturk Stadium, Istanbul.
The African Giant collaborated with Brazilian singer Anitta in an opening ritual of UCL, some minutes before the match kicked off. His global chart-topping ‘Last Last’ unseated the fans, masked with an excitement while vibing to some dance steps, before an astonishing musical transition to his debut ‘Its Plenty’.
The Grammy winner took his official handle to announce where he featured alongside other artists in the UCL night.
He wrote: “As a huge football fan myself, I know it doesn’t get any bigger than the UEFA Champions League! That’s why I’m so excited to be performing on the Pepsi stage at this year’s final.
“Music and football are the ultimate combination, so you already know I’ll be bringing the vibes and making magic in Istanbul. The world ain’t ready for what we have in store!”
Featuring in the UCL final, Burma Boy claimed being the first Nigerian and African artist to play in a Champions League final. He has become one of the biggest artists in the world, gaining international recognition for his unique fusion of Afrobeats, Reggae and Hip Hop.
African singers have now massively competed with the foreign artists, claiming a pro in the global music industry.
Also, it can be recalled that, the 30 Billion Gang record label owner Davido Adedeji Adeleke stagely called Davido also performed in the World Cup opening ceremony last year December at Qatar.
Together with his Nigerian controversial stars Tems and Rema, Burna Boy staged an amazing musical showpiece in the National Basketball Association (NBA)’s All Star show in May, 2023 before landing another internationally recognised sport event in June. This is a testament to the revolutionary domination of African artists in the musical world.
Wale Oloworekende, a Nigerian journalist and the African music columnist at The Face magazine, says “Without them, our music wouldn’t mutate as seamlessly as it does and then there’d be no variety.”