# Grammy Award for Best Global Music Album

The Grammy Award for Best Global Music Album is an honor presented to recording artists for influential music from around the globe at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. Honors in several categories are presented at the ceremony annually by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to "honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the recording industry, without regard to album sales or chart position".

## History

The award for Best Global Music Album, reserved for international performers exhibiting "non-European, indigenous traditions", was first presented to Mickey Hart in 1992 for the album Planet Drum. In 1996, Academy trustees attempted to solve the problem of "compressing 75% or more of the world's music into a single award category" by broadening the definition of "world music" to include non-Western classical music. Beginning in 2001, award recipients included the producers, engineers, and/or mixers associated with the nominated work in addition to the recording artists. Following the 45th Grammy Awards (2003), the award was split into two separate categories for Best Traditional World Music Album and Best Contemporary World Music Album. In 2012, the two categories were merged back to Best World Music Album. In 2020, The Recording Academy announced it would be changing the name of the category to Best Global Music Album.
Angelique Kidjo has won the category the most, with five wins (four of which have been since 2016). The second group to win most often is Ladysmith Black Mambazo, who have won four times during the combined history of Global/World categories. Soweto Gospel Choir have three wins in the Global/World categories. In the single merged category, Ravi Shankar and Ry Cooder have both won twice. Angelique Kidjo also has the most nominations in the combined Global/World history with twelve additional nominations. Anoushka Shankar has the second most nominations in the combined categories with nine nominations.
In the single, merged Global category, artists from Brazil have won the most times with five wins, the USA have won four times, Benin has also won on four occasions, India and South Africa each have three wins, Mali and France have both had artists win twice.

## Recipients

| Year | Performing artist(s) | Nationality | Work | Nominees |
| 1992 | Mickey Hart | United States | Planet Drum | Dori Caymmi – Brazilian Serenata Gipsy Kings – Este Mundo Salif Keita – Amen Milton Nascimento – Txai |
| 1993 | Sérgio Mendes | Brazil | Brasileiro | Gipsy Kings – Gipsy Kings Live Ofra Haza – Kirya Youssou N'Dour – Eyes Open Strunz & Farah – Américas |
| 1994 | Ry Cooder and Vishwa Mohan Bhatt | United States India | A Meeting by the River | Johnny Clegg and Savuka – Heat, Dust and Dreams Deep Forest – Deep Forest Henry Kaiser and David Lindley – A World Out of Time, Vol. 2 Le Mystère des Voix Bulgares – From Bulgaria with Love |
| 1995 | Ry Cooder and Ali Farka Touré | United States Mali | Talking Timbuktu | Gipsy Kings – Love and Liberté Milton Nascimento – Angelus Youssou N'Dour – The Guide (Wommat) Zap Mama – Sabsylma |
| 1996 | Deep Forest | France | Boheme | Cesária Évora – Cesária Baaba Maal – Firin' in Fouta Shankar with Zakir Hussain and Vikku Vinayakram – Raga Aberi The Splendid Master Gnawa Musicians of Morocco featuring Randy Weston – The Splendid Master Gnawa Musicians of Morocco |
| 1997 | The Chieftains | Ireland | Santiago | Béla Fleck, V.M. Bhatt and Jiebing Chen – Tabula Rasā Gipsy Kings – Tierra Gitana Ali Akbar Khan – Legacy Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and Michael Brook – Night Song Joe Zawinul – My People |
| 1998 | Milton Nascimento | Brazil | Nascimento | Cesária Évora – Cabo Verde Gipsy Kings – Compas Ali Akbar Khan – Passing on the Tradition Babatunde Olatunji – Love Drum Talk |
| 1999 | Gilberto Gil | Brazil | Quanta Live | King Sunny Adé – Odu Cesária Évora – Miss Perfumado Angélique Kidjo – Oremi Robbie Robertson – Contact from the Underworld of Redboy |
| 2000 | Caetano Veloso | Brazil | Livro | Afro Celt Sound System – Volume 2: Release Cesária Évora – Café Atlantico Salif Keita – Papa Ali Farka Touré – Niafunke |
| 2001 | João Gilberto | Brazil | João Voz e Violão | Miriam Makeba – Homeland Youssou N'Dour – Joko (The Link) The Chieftains – Water from the Well Paul Winter and the Earth Band – Journey with the Sun |
| 2002 | Ravi Shankar | India | Full Circle: Carnegie Hall 2000 | Afro Celt Sound System – Volume 3: Further in Time Cesária Évora – São Vicente di Longe Gilberto Gil and Milton Nascimento – Gil and Milton John McLaughlin and various artists – Saturday Night in Bombay: Remember Shakti |
| 2003 | Rubén Blades | Panama | Mundo | Salif Keita – Moffou Angélique Kidjo – Black Ivory Soul Femi Kuti – Fight to Win Anoushka Shankar – Live at Carnegie Hall |
| 2012 | Tinariwen | Mali | Tassili | AfroCubism – AfroCubism Femi Kuti – Africa for Africa Ladysmith Black Mambazo – Songs from a Zulu Farm |
| 2013 | Ravi Shankar | India | The Living Room Sessions Part 1 | Amadou & Mariam – Folila Daniel Ho – On a Gentle Island Breeze Hugh Masekela – Jabulani Anoushka Shankar – Traveller |
| 2014 | Gipsy Kings | France | Savor Flamenco | Femi Kuti – No Place for My Dream Ravi Shankar – The Living Room Sessions Part 2 |
| 2014 | Ladysmith Black Mambazo | South Africa | Live: Singing for Peace Around the World | Femi Kuti – No Place for My Dream Ravi Shankar – The Living Room Sessions Part 2 |
| 2015 | Angelique Kidjo | Benin | Eve | Toumani Diabaté and Sidiki Diabaté – Toumani & Sidiki Sérgio Mendes – Magic Anoushka Shankar – Traces of You Wu Man, Luis Conte & Daniel Ho – Our World in Song |
| 2016 | Angelique Kidjo | Benin | Sings | Gilberto Gil – Gilbertos Samba Ao Vivo Ladysmith Black Mambazo with Ella Spira and the Inala Ensemble – Music from Inala Anoushka Shankar – Home Zomba Prison Project – I Have No Everything Here |
| 2017 | Yo-Yo Ma & The Silk Road Ensemble | United States | Sing Me Home | Celtic Woman – Destiny Ladysmith Black Mambazo – Walking in the Footsteps of Our Fathers Anoushka Shankar – Land of Gold Caetano Veloso & Gilberto Gil – Dois Amigos, Um Século de Música: Multishow Live |
| 2018 | Ladysmith Black Mambazo | South Africa | Shaka Zulu Revisited: 30th Anniversary Celebration | Vicente Amigo – Memoria de los Sentidos Buika – Para Mi Anat Cohen & Trio Brasileiro – Rosa Dos Ventos Tinariwen – Elwan |
| 2019 | Soweto Gospel Choir | South Africa | Freedom | Bombino – Deran Fatoumata Diawara – Fenfo Seun Kuti & Egypt 80 – Black Times Yiddish Glory – The Lost Songs of World War II, various artists |
| 2020 | Angelique Kidjo | Benin | Celia | Altin Gün – Gece Bokanté & Metropole Orkest conducted by Jules Buckley – What Heat Burna Boy – African Giant Nathalie Joachim & the Spektral Quartet – Fanm d'Ayiti |
| 2021 | Burna Boy | Nigeria | Twice as Tall | Antibalas - Fu Chronicles Bebel Gilberto - Agora Anoushka Shankar - Love Letters Tinariwen - Amadjar |
| 2022 | Angélique Kidjo | Benin | Mother Nature | Rocky Dawuni – Voice of Bunbon (Vol. 1) Daniel Ho & Friends – East West Players Presents: Daniel Ho & Friends Live in Concert Femi Kuti & Made Kuti – Legacy+ Wizkid – Made in Lagos: Deluxe Edition |
| 2023 | Masa Takumi | Japan | Sakura | Berklee Indian Ensemble – Shuruaat Burna Boy – Love, Damini Angélique Kidjo & Ibrahim Maalouf – Queen of Sheba Anoushka Shankar, Metropole Orkest & Jules Buckley featuring Manu Delago – Between Us... (Live) |
| 2024 | Shakti | India United Kingdom | This Moment | Susana Baca – Epifanías Bokanté – History Burna Boy – I Told Them... Davido – Timeless |
| 2025 | Matt B featuring Royal Philharmonic Orchestra | United States United Kingdom | Alkebulan II | Ciro Hurtado – Paisajes Rema – Heis Antonio Rey – Historias de un Flamenco Tems – Born in the Wild |
Each year is linked to the article about the Grammy Awards held that year.