The African Union (AU), in collaboration with the All Africa Music Awards (AFRIMA), has announced Lagos, Nigeria, as the host city for the 2025 edition of the music awards.
The announcement was made at the AU headquarters in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, by the Head of Culture at the African Union, Angela Martins.
The awards ceremony, along with side events, including the vibrant Music Village Festival, is scheduled to take place from November 25 to 30, 2025.
Martins describes this year’s theme, “Unstoppable Africa,” and the choice of Lagos as its host, as a reflection of the vibrancy, brilliance, and dream of modern African music, which the city represents.
“Music is not merely sound, it is a strategy. From Dar es Salaam to Acrra and other parts of the world, music flows like a river through our culture, and it connects, heals, and moves us forward,” Martins said, explaining the AU’s enduring partnership with AFRIMA.
The AFRIMA 2025 calendar starts with a call for entries on May 20, inviting submissions from African artists across the continent and the diaspora.
Artists can submit works across various categories and genres as part of this celebration of musical excellence, an initiative aligned with the AU’s Agenda 2063, which champions culture as a driver of development in Africa.
AFRIMA has served as a powerful platform for cultural exchange and continental integration.
AFRIMA’s President, Mike Dada, reiterated this mission, saying that AFRIMA is a rallying point to further integrate the continent.
“This is to ensure we have an enduring platform called AFRIMA to be used as a rallying platform to integrate the continent, for peace, job creation, and for telling our own stories,” Dada said.
The road to AFRIMA 2025 will also include events in other African countries, including Morocco, Tanzania, and Côte d’Ivoire, and will also make stops in London, UK, and Paris in France.
Lagos Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, had in April declared the state’s readiness to host Africa and the world for the 2025 edition of the AFRIMA.
Speaking when he received a high-powered delegation from the African Union and the AFRIMA International Committee in his office, Sanwo-Olu stated that Lagos’ acceptance to host AFRIMA 2025 aligned with his administration’s vision to make the creative and tourism industry a major pillar of the state’s development drive.
The governor said, “One of the key pillars of our administration’s development agenda is the creative industry. Since I took office, we’ve been intentional about building a vibrant creative ecosystem supporting film, music, fashion, photography, and cultural tourism.
“We are happy to receive the AFRIMA team; we will do it, and we will be part of this. This is one initiative we are proud to accommodate. Our team will work together with your team to action this. We thank the African Union and the AFRIMA Committee for trusting Lagos.”
