How King Sunny Ade’s Album Made Billboard History – US Mission

The United States Mission in Nigeria has recalled how juju musician King Sunny Ade made history on the Billboard 200 chart in 1983.

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The mission made this known on Thursday through its X platform as part of its #ThisWeekinUSNigeriaHistory series.

According to the mission, Sunny Ade’s 1982 album, Jùjú Music, spent 29 weeks on the Billboard 200, introducing his music to a wider American audience.

The album peaked at number 111 on the chart in September 1983. It was released internationally through Island Records and featured Sunny Ade with his African Beats.

The mission said Jùjú Music remained the longest charting album by a Nigerian artist on the Billboard 200 for about 40 years, until another Nigerian musician broke the record in 2023.

“American audiences have long embraced the creativity and innovation coming from Nigeria,” the U.S. Mission said, challenging its followers to identify the album that ended Sunny Ade’s long standing record.

The record was broken in August 2023 by Rema’s debut album, Rave & Roses. The album spent its 30th week on the Billboard 200, surpassing the 29 weeks recorded by Jùjú Music.

Rema’s achievement came four decades after Sunny Ade established the record. Rave & Roses, released in 2022, features songs including “Calm Down”, which later became one of Rema’s biggest international hits.

Sunny Ade’s appearance on the Billboard 200 came at a time when Nigerian music had limited presence on major American music charts. His success helped bring the Yoruba rooted juju sound to audiences outside Nigeria, with the album combining traditional percussion and talking drums with electric guitars, keyboards and other contemporary sounds.

The Billboard 200 ranks albums based on their popularity in the United States using a combination of consumption measures, including album sales and streaming activity.