The organisers of the world’s most prestigious award show, The Grammys, have welcomed Nigeria’s Creative Industry expert, Dolapo Amusat, as a professional member of the academy.
The recording academy extended invitations to the WeTalkSound Founder and about 3700 other music creators and professionals to join its 2023 new member class. The invited members (2800 voting members and 800 professional members), upon acceptance of the invitation, can fully participate in the entire process of the 2024 Grammy Awards.
Listed amongst Pulse’s 20 under 30 Individuals Shaping the Nigerian music industry, Dolapo Amusat is the founder of WeTalkSound (WTS), a 360-degree creative company with an impressive roster of clients, including artistes Teni, Victony, Reminisce, Davido Music Worldwide (DMW), Joeboy, and record labels Aristokrat Records and EMPIRE. Dolapo, who also does Product Marketing at Google, is uniquely positioned at the intersection of the tech and creative industries.
Through WeTalkSound, he has platformed a community of burgeoning creatives. Projects like the LOFN album series, Camp Nova, and Insert Nights have over the years fostered creative partnerships. Within the WTS community, Dolapo has brought together a network of creatives, encouraging growth and collaboration within Africa’s creative scene.
Describing his vision for the company, Dolapo said, “When I think about WeTalkSound, I think about a conglomerate—a huge holding company, like Roc Nation. Roc Nation has a label, management, sports, events, live, and different divisions. They are like a behemoth that has several things under it; that is how I see WeTalkSound.”
The Recording Academy invitation comes on the heels of the announcement of a new category for the Best African Music Performance ahead of the 66th GRAMMYs next year. According to the Grammy website, the category recognises recordings that utilise unique local expressions from across the African continent, Highlighting regional melodic, harmonic, and rhythmic musical traditions.
This announcement symbolises the global expansion and acceptance of African music and musicians. As Dolapo describes it, “It is a very important moment for Nigerians, Afrobeats, and everyone involved. I think we are privileged to be a part of the culture at this moment.”
Members of the Recording Academy play an essential role in shaping the future of the global music industry. Only Recording Academy members, in addition to media companies, can submit their music and works for GRAMMY Awards consideration. The Recording Academy offers three membership types: Voting Membership for performers, songwriters, producers, and other creators; Professional Membership for music business professionals; and GRAMMY U Membership for students currently enrolled full-time in a college, university, or trade school with a desire to work in the recording industry upon graduation.
