Ayra Starr: Afrobeats has found global appeal after “generations of hard work”

Nigerian singer Ayra Starr said the global appeal of Afrobeats was the result of “generations of hard work.”

The 22-year-old delivered a triumphant performance on Saturday when she entered the Pyramid Stage at the Glastonbury Festival just hours before Coldplay’s headline performance.

She told the PA news agency of the experience: “It was incredible. I am so grateful. I can’t wait to come back.”

“As an artist, I always feel like I want to do more.”

Speaking about the genre’s global appeal, she said: “Afrobeats has been around on this continent for so long, forget what you’re listening to now. It’s the result of the hard work of generations of talented artists who were there long before me and even long before Wizkid and Burna (Boy).”

“Just amazing artists who have worked so hard to make Afrobeats what it is today and I feel like our time has come.”

Speaking about the importance of seeing female artists on the main stage, she said: “It’s very important because if I didn’t see women like Beyoncé headlining, I wouldn’t think I could do it.

“That’s why representation is so important because we have talented young women watching this at home and it makes a big difference to see someone like them on stage, so I think that’s great.”

This year’s Somerset festival lineup includes two female headliners – pop star Dua Lipa and R&B band SZA – and Canadian singer Shania Twain fills the coveted Legends slot.

Ahead of the festival weekend, Glastonbury organiser Emily Eavis told BBC Radio 6 Music that it had been her “passion project” to secure two female headliners for this year’s festival, following criticism over the years about the gender balance in the line-up.

Starr is one of numerous Nigerian musicians taking to the main stage this year, including Femi Kuti, who opened the Pyramid Stage on Saturday morning, and Afrobeats artist Burna Boy, who will play the Pyramid Stage on Sunday before SZA’s headlining slot.