The Nelas Academy

AYRA STARR

Nigeria | Music

Ayra Starr is one of the prominent voices of Nigeria’s new generation of Afrobeats and Afropop artists. Emerging professionally in the early 2020s, she quickly attracted international attention through her distinctive combination of Afropop, R&B and alternative influences. Her debut EP and album 19 & Dangerous established her as a major young African recording artist, while songs such as “Rush” expanded her international profile. In 2024, she became one of the inaugural nominees in the Grammy category for Best African Music Performance, marking an important moment in the increasing international recognition of contemporary African music. Her career represents the growing influence of young African women within the global music economy and the expanding international reach of Nigerian popular music.

The Nelas Research Focus: Afrobeats • Young African Women • Global Music

NELAS 100 GREAT WOMEN OF COLOR 1975–2025
HALL OF FAME EDITION
(50-Year Retrospective Research Project)

The Nelas 100 Great Women of Color is a curated research and documentation selection, not a definitive ranking of all Black and African women who have contributed to global entertainment.

The Nelas 100 Great Women of Color 1975–2025 is an international research and documentation project of the Nelas Academy which is an emerging international media, arts and cultural research institution created to celebrate and preserve the contributions of Black and African women in creative arts, entertainment, music, film, modelling, poetry, fashion, pageantry and cultural presentation.

© Published by the Media & Research Department of
The Nelas Academy of Arts, Media and Television.