Gospel artiste Gaise Baba has criticised The Headies for what he sees as the sidelining of faith-based music in major award categories.

He argued that gospel artistes should be judged alongside other musicians based on the quality and impact of their work.

In an open letter posted on X on August 28, Gaise Baba reflected on his experience as a nominee. He described himself as a leading voice in Afrogospel and said he has been part of the Nigerian music industry for more than 15 years.

He maintained that a rap song remains a rap song regardless of its subject matter. According to him, craft, delivery and flow should determine the category, not whether the lyrics focus on faith or other themes.

Gaise Baba recalled that The Headies introduced an Inspirational category in 2022, which he welcomed as a positive step. However, he expressed disappointment that the category was not presented on stage at the previous awards ceremony, despite nominees attending the event.

For the 2026 edition scheduled for Toronto on October 25, his song “No Turning Back 2” with Lawrence Oyor is nominated for Best Inspirational Single. He has called on the organisers to give every announced category proper recognition and to allow faith-based music to compete more broadly based on artistic merit.

Photo credit: Punch Newspaper