Earlier this month, the Nigerian superstar Burna Boy made history as the first Afrobeats act to perform during the prime time, televised ceremony of the Grammy Awards. The singer graced the stage accompanied by R&B legend Brandy and rapper 21 Savage to perform his song "Sittin' on Top of The World." It was a fitting choice to usher in Afrobeats to music's biggest night, considering the new heights the genre is reaching in America's music industry.

In a new report on how U.S. and global listeners consumed music in 2023 compiled by Luminate Data, the evidence was clear: Global music — with Afrobeats and K-pop leading the way — is the fastest growing genre among both U.S. and global listeners, with on-demand streaming up 26.2% in the last year. And stateside musical institutions have started taking notice. The Recording Academy debuted a brand new category specifically to honor music from the continent: best African music performance.

From Burna Boy to Sade, King Sunny Ade to Miriam Makeba, African-born artists have been nominated and won Grammy Awards before — often in the best global music album category — but the creation of an entire category dedicated to the continent marks the new level of impact.

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