Angélique Kidjo Becomes the First African Musician to Receive a Hollywood Walk of Fame Star

Published: August 19, 2026 Last Updated 44 minutes ago by FPN

It was a significant event for African music and global culture when the five-time Grammy Award-winning singer, songwriter, actress, and activist Angélique Kidjo became the first African musician and the first Black African performer to be honoured with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

On August 18, 2026, under the clear California skies at 7011 Hollywood Boulevard, the renowned Beninese artist was awarded the 2,854th star in the Recording category, thus recognizing the remarkable span of her four-decade-long career and the substantial impact that African artistry has had on the world’s soundtrack.

The outdoor event, which was conducted by Variety correspondent Angelique Jackson and broadcast live, attracted an impressive number of admirers and industry professionals.

Present among them were Willem Dafoe, a four-time Academy Award-nominated actor who has been a long-time friend of Kidjo’s since 2002; Harvey Mason Jr., who is the CEO of the Recording Academy and has received multiple Grammy nominations; Benin-born, Academy Award-nominated actor Djimon Hounsou; and Nigerian music star Adekunle Gold.

Ron Frierson, president and chief executive officer of the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, declared August 18 to be Angélique Kidjo Day in Hollywood right before the star was revealed.

The atmosphere was joyful and celebratory as Kidjo, 66, began to sing and dance enthusiastically over her newly unveiled star.

In her acceptance speech, Kidjo highlighted the important significance of the event.

“We Africans do not know what we have given to the world or what we are still giving to it; without us there could be no music on this planet,” she stated, emphasizing Africa’s fundamental role in global musical traditions.

Her remarks served both as a proud statement of her heritage and as a long-overdue call for recognition.

Kidjo was born in 1960 in Ouidah, Benin, and was surrounded from an early age by the rich rhythmic traditions of West Africa. In the early 1980s, she left the country because of the dictatorship and ended up in Paris, where she began building an international career that, over time, included nearly 20 albums.

Her distinctive style skillfully combines West African rhythms, languages (such as Fon, Yoruba, and her own invented expressions), funk, jazz, R&B, gospel, and various global influences.

Because of hits and critically praised works like Logozo, Djin Djin, Eve, Celia (a tribute to Celia Cruz), her version of Talking Heads’ Remain in Light, and Mother Nature, she has gained wide acclaim and commercial success, with several of her albums reaching the top 10 of Billboard’s World Albums chart.

Her Grammy Awards are particularly notable, as she is the artist with the most wins in the Best Global Music Album category, having won from 2008 (for Djin Djin) through the early 2020s (for Mother Nature).

She has also received the 2023 Polar Music Prize, was named one of TIME magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in 2021, performed at major international events such as the opening ceremony of the Tokyo Olympics, and holds the Guinness World Record for the most wins in the global music album category.

Among her collaborators over the years have been Alicia Keys, Burna Boy, Pharrell Williams, Yo-Yo Ma, Peter Gabriel, Bono, Davido, Ayra Starr and many others—demonstrating her ability to connect different generations, continents, and musical genres.

Outside her work in theatre and the studio, Kidjo has spent much of her life campaigning for causes. Since 2002, she has been a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador and has worked to promote children’s rights all over the world.

In 2006, she established the Batonga Foundation, the name coming from a word she coined as a child to resist the idea that girls should not be allowed to go to school. The foundation provides adolescent girls and young women in several African countries with education, guidance, financial literacy training, and support to start their own businesses.

Willem Dafoe pointed out her dedication at the event, saying that her involvement “is not just a superficial celebrity gesture; it is an extension of what she does with her music. She inspires us, gives us encouragement, and reminds us that we are all connected, and that love and understanding are the way.”

He also described her as “without any doubt the hardest-working woman in show business.”

Harvey Mason Jr. also gave equally touching tributes, saying, “This star is a permanent symbol; it’s not going anywhere, and it’s a symbol of your achievements. But your legacy lies in all the people you’ve touched and inspired, in the barriers you’ve broken and the connections you’ve created all over the world… Angélique is indeed one of those rare artists.”

At a time when African music is gaining increasing international recognition—from Afrobeats through highlife and all the way beyond—Kidjo’s star is being placed.

Although South African actress Charlize Theron was given a star in 2005 and earlier personalities like Basil Rathbone (who was born in Johannesburg) received honours many decades before, no African musician or Black African performer had previously been included among the more than 2,700 stars on the Walk of Fame.

The fact that Kidjo is being chosen for the 2026 class, alongside people such as Miley Cyrus and Timothée Chalamet, shows that the award’s cultural reach is being significantly broadened.

With her most recent album, Hope!! (which was released at the beginning of 2026), she once again follows in her tradition of producing optimistic, collaborative work, this time featuring artists such as Pharrell Williams, Quavo, Davido, Charlie Wilson, and Ayra Starr. Once more, the album shows her determination not to slow down and her firm belief in music’s power to foster connection and positive change.

For Angélique Kidjo, having a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame is more than just a personal achievement; it is a form of public recognition of the essential role African music has played in the global cultural scene and a strong symbol for artists from the continent who come after her.

As she has said herself in her reflections on the honour, she is the first one, but she is certain that she will not be the last; many others will come afterward, and that idea brings her great joy.

Photo: Frederic J. Brown, AFP