Gaise Baba Accuses Headies Award of Sidelining Gospel Artistes
Gaise Baba has criticised The Headies for restricting faith-based music, calling for gospel artistes to compete in broader categories based on their work.
The Nation reported that he made the call in an August 28, 2026 open letter to the organisers. He used his experience as a nominee to question aspects of the awards’ structure.
The Afrogospel artiste said he has been active in Nigeria’s music industry for more than 15 years.
He said, “As a faith-based artiste, I believe in expressing myself freely without limiting my music to religious gatherings. I will engage fully across the music industry.
Gaise Baba questioned why songs centred on sexual themes receive mainstream recognition for their artistic quality. He noted that faith-based music often remains confined to a narrower category.
He also urged industry stakeholders to recognise gospel music’s wider cultural influence, citing “Favour” and “No Turning Back II” as examples and questioning how many songs released during the year under review had achieved similar reach across Nigeria and beyond.
According to him, a rap record remains rap regardless of whether it discusses money, fame, sex or faith. He said songwriting, delivery, cadence and flow should determine how the music is classified.
Gaise Baba maintained that a song’s subject should not determine its genre, arguing that factors such as songwriting, cadence, delivery and flow should guide how a rap record is classified.
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The singer said limiting gospel songs to inspirational categories could reduce their chances of recognition elsewhere in the industry. He added that placing rap songs with gospel themes only in inspirational or gospel categories could deny them recognition in mainstream rap.
The 18th edition of The Headies will take place in Toronto, Canada, on October 25, 2026, with nominees competing across 35 categories. Gaise Baba acknowledged the introduction of the Inspirational category in 2022 as a positive development. However, he expressed disappointment over his experience at the previous edition.
His song “Particularly,” featuring Tope Alabi, received a nomination in the category alongside Anendlessocean, Mercy Chinwo, Dunsin Oyekan and Limoblaze.
According to Gaise Baba, his team participated in the activities held before the main ceremony, but the Inspirational category was not announced on stage.
He said the decision left the artistes nominated in the category feeling overlooked. He also noted that other categories were left uncalled during a ceremony that lasted more than five hours.
Gaise Baba said the Inspirational category was among several categories that did not receive stage recognition during the ceremony. He noted that the organisers had enough time to announce more categories despite the event lasting over five hours.
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He called on The Headies to ensure that every category announced for the awards receives adequate attention during the main event. He also questioned what he described as a disparity in how songs are judged. According to him, songs centred on sexual themes can compete for artistic recognition, while faith-based songs remain confined to a specific category.
Gaise Baba questioned why songs centred on sexual themes receive mainstream recognition for their artistic quality. He noted that faith-based music often remains confined to a narrower category.
Gaise Baba questioned why songs centred on sexual themes receive mainstream recognition for their artistic quality, while faith-based music often remains confined to a narrower category.
He also urged industry stakeholders to recognise gospel music’s wider cultural influence, citing “Favour” and “No Turning Back II” as examples. According to him, few songs released during the year under review achieved a similar reach across Nigeria and beyond.
Gaise Baba questioned whether any other songs released within the period under review had achieved the same level of cultural impact and reach across Nigeria and beyond as “FAVOR” and “NO TURNING BACK II.”
For the 2026 edition, Gaise Baba and Lawrence Oyor’s “No Turning Back 2” is nominated for Best Inspirational Single. It faces competition from entries by Sunmisola Agbebi, Sinach, EmmaOMG and Mercy Chinwo.
Gaise Baba’s comments have renewed debate about gospel music’s place in Nigeria’s mainstream industry and whether faith-based artistes should receive wider recognition at major awards.
source: The Nation News
Content Credit: Azeez Amosun
Image Credit: Facebook.com
