13. Diamond Platnumz ft Omarion — African Beauty (2018)
Dubbed the King of Bongo Flava and the poster child for Tanzanian music on the continent, Diamond partners up with B2K front man Omarion. I must say one of the most impressive things about this song is how Omarion sings the bridge which is in Swahili, something you don’t see that too often from foreign artists. Either way this song is a must listen!
12. Cassper Nyovest ft Goapele — Destiny (2017)
Cassper has always been underrated with pen in my opinion because most of his songs are pop songs however this one right here hits different. He really opens up about his issues with love and U.S singer Goapele matches his energy on the hook. The original version of this song stems from South African Afropop group Malaika back in the early 2000’s.
11. Jorja Smith ft Burna Boy — Be Honest (2018)
UK based R&B singer Jorja Smith did well by jumping on the Afrobeats wave here because this song is amazing. It’s a very mellow yet raunchy anthem for the ladies and Burna Boy absolutely killed his verse.
10. Sauti Sol ft India Arie — My everything (2020)
Kenyan pop band, Sauti Sol, stay releasing catchy sing-a-long love ballads so this partnership with India Arie is really no surprise. India Arie herself is a soulful love song songstress and all about celebrating blackness. This is a match made in heaven.
9. Kwesta ft Wale — Spirit (2017)
This is what happens when two bar-for-bar rappers unite on a South African track dedicated to the hood – the combo is just too much! Wale is somewhat a poet with his music so it fits well with Kwesta’s ghetto fabulous persona.
8. Davido, Chris Brown — Blow My Mind (2019)
You can’t listen to this song and not vibe to it, its a jam for any dance floor. I applaud Davido for this collabo because it works. In fact Chris Brown complimented this song so well that Davido should consider doing a joint album. If it happens, just know that you heard it here first, thank me later.
7. Major Lazer & DJ Maphorisa – Particula ft Nasty C, Ice Prince, Patoranking & Jidenna (2017)
Major Lazer are known for collaborating with artists all over the world, more importantly they tend to adapt their sound to that of the artists they collaborate with. On this song they partner up with South African producer DJ Maphorisa on this summertime jam and we love everything about it. Its a south and west combination with all the featured artists coming from Nigeria (Ice Prince, Patoranking & Jidenna) and South Africa (Nasty C).
6. Beyoncé, Blue Ivy, SAINt JHN, WizKid – Brown Skin Girl (2019)
A beautiful song performed by two of their continents’ biggest artists – singing about black pride and upliftment will never get old especially if its as good as this song. Beyonce and Wizkid combine to create magic as both compliment each other on the track. Shout out for all the melanin in the visuals too!
5. Skepta ft Wizkid — Energy (Stay Far Away) (2018)
The man with the hardest drip game alongside Africa’s Starboy is a combo not to be messed with. The title says it all really if you got bad energy your presence is not wanted — the song is an absolute banger. In the words of Skepta himself: “I saw the turn up button, so I pressed it twice”.
4. Dave ft Burna Boy — Location (2019)
Dave and Burna boy were arguably two of the standout artists that year. 2019 was probably the biggest year Afrobeats has had in terms of worldwide impact especially in the UK. It’s always amazing seeing Africans and U.K artists of African descent collaborating, reppin’ their original and current roots.
3. Nasty C ft Ari Lennox — Black & White (2020)
This was quite a popular song coming out of Nasty’s 2020 album Zulu Man With Some Power. So much so that it became the soundtrack for Coming 2 America, the sequel to the 90’s classic movie starring Eddie Murphy as the Prince of Zamunda.
2. Wizkid & Drake — Come closer (2017)
Wizkid simply doesn’t miss, does he? This is one of my favourite songs ever – peaking at no.38 on the Billboard 100 charts. The visuals for the video are absolutely stunning. I mean just check out the dancing, the African attire, the aesthetics and most importantly the melanin! Its a pity Drizzy wasn’t in the video caused he missed out.
1. Drake ft Wizkid — One Dance (2016)
Peaking at no.1 on the Billboard 100 chart, this banger spent 25 weeks on the charts — it was easily the biggest song that year. Drake is known for jumping onto a new wave before most major artists so some might even say that this song was the catalyst for the world starting to give their attention to Afrobeats.
