The All Africa Music Awards (AFRIMA) will open entries for its 10th edition on October 11, 2026, ahead of the main events scheduled for Lagos from May 18 to 23, 2027.

The African Union (AU) and AFRIMA’s international executive committee unveiled the calendar at the 10th AFRIMA creative industry roundtable in Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, United States.

According to a statement released by the organisers on Wednesday, the grand awards ceremony will be held on May 23, 2027.

AFRIMA announces entry and voting dates

Mike Dada, AFRIMA president and executive producer, said the call for entries will close on January 10, 2027.

Collation and pre-screening will take place from January 11 to 14. Adjudication will follow from January 15 to 22.

The organisers will announce the nominees on January 29. Public voting will then run from February 21 to May 21, 2027.

Eligible creative works must have been produced and released between August 10, 2025, and January 10, 2027.

Dada also unveiled the international build-up programme, tagged #Road2AFRIMA10Xperience.

The programme will cover London, Windhoek, Cotonou, Nairobi, Accra, Paris, Warri and Port Harcourt.

In Lagos, the AFRIMA 10X conference, media parley and industry night will be held on April 14. University activations and concerts will also take place between February and April.

“The journey will culminate in Lagos with the 10th AFRIMA Main Events from May 18 to 23, 2027, and the grand awards ceremony on May 23,” Dada said.

Dada speaks on AFRIMA’s 10th edition

Dada said the 10th edition would celebrate a decade of African musical excellence. He added that it would strengthen AFRIMA’s contribution to Africa’s creative economy.

“African artistes are filling arenas around the world. African sounds are influencing global culture. But visibility alone is not enough. We must turn visibility into opportunity, opportunity into investment, and investment into sustainable creative industries. Africa must not only export culture; Africa must capture the capital and build wealth from its culture,” he said.

Dada described the global calendar as “a roadmap for engagement, collaboration, investment and cultural exchange.”

He said the programme would bring together artistes, creatives, investors, policymakers, media and industry leaders.

The statement said the Los Angeles unveiling followed earlier #Road2AFRIMA10Xperience engagements in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania; Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire; and Rabat and Casablanca, Morocco.

Award-winning American artiste and producer Septimius The Great delivered the welcome remarks at the event.

“The connection between African artistes and American artistes is more important than ever. We have the talent, the creativity and the stories, but when we build the bridge between Africa and America, we create opportunities that can take our music and our culture to an even bigger global audience,” he said.

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