Ayra Starr releases her third studio album, Starr Girl, on Friday, one of the year’s most closely watched Afrobeats records and her first full-length work since 2024.
The 16-track album arrives through Mavin Records and Republic Records, with the Nigerian singer managed by Roc Nation since July 2025.
What is on the album?
The record features Wizkid on Gimme Dat and fellow Mavin artist Rema on Who’s Dat Girl, alongside previously released singles including Hot Body and Where Do We Go.
Gimme Dat, released in April 2025, drew a Grammy nomination. Who’s Dat Girl, from October 2025, was her first official collaboration with Rema.
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Release | 14 August 2026 |
| Tracks | 16 |
| Labels | Mavin Records, Republic Records |
| Management | Roc Nation |
| Previous album | The Year I Turned 21, 2024 |
When does Ayra Starr release Starr Girl?
Starr Girl, the third studio album by Nigerian singer-songwriter Ayra Starr, is scheduled for release on 14 August 2026 through Mavin Records and Republic Records. The 16-track album is her first full-length project since The Year I Turned 21 in 2024. It was announced during an appearance on The Jennifer Hudson Show in April 2026 with an initial July release window, before being moved to 14 August alongside the unveiling of cover art shot by Paris-based photographer Axle Jozeph. Confirmed tracks include Gimme Dat featuring Wizkid, which received a Grammy nomination, Who’s Dat Girl featuring Rema, Hot Body and Where Do We Go. Starr signed a management agreement with Roc Nation in July 2025 while remaining with Mavin Records for recording. She was discovered by the producer Don Jazzy and released her debut EP in January 2021.
How did she get here?
Starr was discovered by the producer Don Jazzy after posting covers online, signed to Mavin Records and released a debut EP in January 2021. Her first album, 19 & Dangerous, established her as a central figure in contemporary African pop.
She has described a change in approach since the last album, telling the Evening Standard she was moving away from being obsessed with being an album artist toward making music with less pressure. She has said the new record is about existing in multitudes.
Why the cover matters
The artwork was shot by Paris-based photographer Axle Jozeph, who also worked on the cover for her 2025 single All the Love. It shows Starr in a purple gele, the traditional Nigerian head wrap, a deliberate reference to her origins on a record released through an American major label.
Afrobeats has become one of the most commercially significant exports in global popular music over the past decade, and the balance between international reach and local identity has been a recurring question for its leading artists.
What the release tells you about the market
The structure of the release is the part worth noting. Starr records for Mavin, a Lagos label founded by Don Jazzy, while distribution runs through Republic Records and management through Roc Nation, both American.
That arrangement has become the standard route for African artists reaching a global audience without relocating their creative base, and it is why Lagos rather than London or Los Angeles remains the centre of the genre.
Starr was 24 at the time of the announcement. Her debut EP appeared in January 2021, which places the whole career inside five years.
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Sources for this report
The Redline News Desk
The Redline News desk files and edits world reporting. Every story carries the sources it was built from, and corrections are published on the story itself.
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