The founder of The Headies, Ayo Animashaun, has criticised Nigerian artistes who pursue recognition from foreign award bodies while allegedly neglecting local music awards.
In a post shared on his Instagram Story, Animashaun questioned why some musicians submit entries to international award organisers but fail to enter their works for The Headies, only to complain when they miss out on nominations.
“Tom, Dick and Harry will submit entries to foreign award bodies that don’t even care about them and proudly post about it. But these same people won’t submit their entries to the Headies, yet they’ll complain about not being nominated. Funny,” he wrote.
🚨Ayo Animashaun calls out artistes ignoring the Headies but chasing foreign awards 👀
“Tom, Dick and Harry will submit entries to foreign award bodies that don't even care about them and proudly post about it. But these same people won't submit their entries to the Headies, yet… pic.twitter.com/CtSMPnlJ7O
His comments come amid reported submissions by Nigerian stars for the 2027 Grammy Awards. Animashaun also defended The Headies’ vision in a follow-up post, insisting that the organisers would stand by their decisions as long as artistes and sponsors understood the direction of the awards.
