11 Songs Where Rappers Collaborated With Afrobeats Stars

Key Takeaways:

• These genre-blending tracks showcase the creative synergy between Afrobeats and Hip Hop artists.
• Collaborations like “Water (Remix)” and “Sittin’ On Top Of The World” reflect a growing global sound.
• The rise of Afrobeats in Hip Hop circles signals a shift in how mainstream music defines influence.

With artists like Tems, Davido, and Ayra Starr crossing over internationally, Afrobeats is more global than ever. Along the way, many of our favorites have teamed up with rap, another genre built on collaboration.

Tyla’s self-titled debut, for instance, featured Travis Scott remixing her breakout hit “Water” and Gunna popping up elsewhere. Burna Boy has also bridged those worlds, with I Told Them… featuring names like J. Cole, 21 Savage, U.K. mainstay Dave, and RZA. Rap has always been about boundary-pushing, and like many of us, a lot of Afrobeats stars grew up as fans of Hip Hop, whether through its aesthetics or the music itself.

As a result, we’ve gotten moments like Drake and Wizkid’s “One Dance” and Burna Boy assisting Gunna on the super seductive “wgft.” With that in mind, Rap-Up rounded up 11 songs where rappers and Afrobeats stars came together and made magic. See our favorite picks below.

1. Gunna and Burna Boy’s “wgft”

Over the years, Gunna has given the ladies at least one song to gravitate toward on each album. What “clear my rain” was to 2024’s One of Wun, “wgft” became on 2025’s The Last Wun — just turned up a notch with a touch of Afrobeats influence. A big reason for that is Burna Boy showing up for a brief but memorable guest verse. It’s easily one of the best songs on that LP, in our opinion.

2. Tems and J. Cole’s “Free Fall”

Arriving toward the tail end of J. Cole’s 2024 feature run, the North Carolina native showed up on Tems’ Born in the World through “Free Fall.” In the Lagos singer’s own words, “This is about, after you fell in love with someone, they fell in love too.” With Cole being one of just two guests on her debut album, it was nice hearing how comfortably their voices sit next to each other.

3. Davido and Nicki Minaj’s “Holy Ground”

Nicki Minaj has tried her hand at dancehall, Latin Music, and, yes, Afrobeats. In 2020, she joined Davido on “Holy Ground” from his star-studded A Better Time album. “Ayo, ‪I’m giving medals, I gotta give you the G / I’m bouncing all on the D‬ / ‪I just had to give you the V‬,” she rapped. According to Davido, Minaj even did her verse for free.

4. Cardi B and Tyla’s “Nice Guy”

Tyla had a huge breakthrough after the world caught onto “Water,” and since then, she’s become one of the faces of African pop. Because of that, artists — whether in rap or R&B — seem more comfortable pulling her outside of Afrobeats production. You hear it on Cardi B’s “Nice Guy,” where the South African singer handles the chorus and does a bit of sing-rapping on the final verse. It’s just one more reason to love 2025’s AM I THE DRAMA?

5. Drake and Wizkid’s “One Dance”

Drake’s “One Dance” pulls from a little bit of everything: dancehall, Afrobeats, and house, thanks to its use of Kyla’s “Do You Mind.” Wizkid also shows up toward the back half of the Views track. “One Dance” might not be everyone’s pick for the best rapper-Afrobeats crossover, but it did make Wizkid the first Nigerian artist to top the Billboard Hot 100.

“I gotta at least honor the person that handed me the football before I ran for the touchdown,” Drake shared on “Rap Radar,” according to REVOLT. “Wizkid was on the song with me. I had blessings from the real dons in that space, you know.”

6. Asake and Central Cee’s “Wave”

“She a baddie, got my validation, say your body need examination / Say you want vacation, then we ain’t goin’ Afro Nation,” Central Cee dishes out on his Asake collaboration “Wave.” Before dropping his own debut album, the “Doja” hitmaker showed up on the Nigerian artist’s Lungu Boy. Of course, Cench hardly ever does anything halfway, so he flew all the way to Lagos to shoot the video.

7. David Guetta, Ayra Starr, and Lil Durk’s “Big FU”

It’s hard to remember a time when Lil Durk wasn’t a reliable feature. French DJ and producer David Guetta teamed up with the Chicago rapper and Ayra Starr on “Big FU,” a huge middle finger aimed at their so-called replacements. The 19 & Dangerous artist gives the record its melodic backbone.

8. Ice Spice and Rema’s “Pretty Girl”

We’re not sure whether to be more impressed by the fact that RIOTUSA produced “Pretty Girl” or that Ice Spice rode the Afro-infused instrumental the way she did. In addition to giving the Bronx rapper an assist with ad-libs, Rema lent his vocals to the chorus: “Yeah, pretty gyal, me no do no kiss and tell / As long as you treat me well, I will treat you more than gem.”

9. ODUMODUBLVCK, Bloody Civilian, and Wale’s “BLOOD ON THE DANCE FLOOR”

Wale has experimented with Afrobeats quite a few times throughout his career, which made him a perfect match for ODUMODUBLVCK’s “BLOOD ON THE DANCE FLOOR.” Alongside Bloody Civilian, we get to hear the DMV mainstay tap into his Nigerian roots with a mention of Ondo. “And I don’t trust nothing but this God-given flow / Dobale to Folarin when you pass Ondo,” he raps on the EZIOKWU cut.

10. Childish Gambino, Amaarae, and Flo Milli’s “Talk My S**t”

Amaarae appears on two songs from Childish Gambino’s fifth studio album, Bando Stone and The New World: “In The Night” and “Talk My S**t.” On the latter, the “Atlanta” creator begins rapping right out the gate, and thankfully, we get Amaarae in her element, too. “I feel like Gucci Mane, I might just throw her at the drop / I keep that hoochie out the hummer, almost killed the thot,” the Ghanaian American singer spits. Flo Milli serves as the nearly four-minute track’s perfect finishing touch.

11. Fireboy DML, 21 Savage, and Blxst’s “Peru (Remix)”

Fireboy DML’s version of Afrobeats often blends the genre with outside influences, which is how you end up with an artist like Ed Sheeran on a song like “Peru.” For the record’s official remix, DML swapped Teddy for 21 Savage and Blxst. “I wanna see you wine, get on all fours / Lace front, but she like her beats Afro,” the London-born rapper dishes out after referencing Chanel and So So Def.