Oyinkansola Sarah Aderibigbe, known professionally as Ayra Starr, is one of the brightest stars of the new Afrobeats generation. Discovered by Don Jazzy through an Instagram video in 2021, she went from posting song covers to Grammy nominations and a BET Award in under five years. Her confident, genre-fluid sound and commanding stage presence have made her the most-streamed female artist in Nigeria and a fixture on the world’s biggest stages.

Biography & Early Life

Ayra Starr was born on 14 June 2002 in Cotonou, Benin Republic, to Nigerian parents from Kwara State. She is of Yoruba heritage and the second of five children. Because of her father’s work, the family moved frequently, and she was raised between Cotonou, Lagos and Abuja. She grew up in a musical household: her mother was a singer, and she and her older brother Damilola made music together as children.

She sat her school-leaving exams a year early and graduated from Les Cours Sonou University in Cotonou with a bachelor’s degree in international relations and political science before she was twenty. As a teenager she signed with the Lagos modelling agency Quove Models and began posting song covers by artists such as Andra Day and 2Face Idibia on social media. In December 2019 she uploaded her first original song, “Damage,” to her Instagram page.

Music Career

Don Jazzy, the founder of Mavin Records, saw the “Damage” video and messaged her within hours, inviting her to meet. She signed with Mavin Records and began recording in Lagos in 2020. Her self-titled debut EP was released in January 2021, topping the Nigerian Apple Music chart, with the lead single “Away” charting on the Billboard Top Triller Global.

Her debut studio album, 19 & Dangerous, followed in August 2021. Its lead single “Bloody Samaritan” became the first song by a solo female artist to reach number one on the TurnTable Top 50, marking her as a breakout star. In 2022 she released “Rush,” which charted in the UK, Ireland and Switzerland, gathered close to a billion global streams, drew a remix featuring R&B icon Kelly Rowland, and earned her a Grammy nomination for Best African Music Performance — the youngest Nigerian nominee in history at the time.

Her second studio album, The Year I Turned 21, arrived in May 2024, debuting at number 195 on the Billboard 200 — a first for a Nigerian female artist. That year she became the first African woman to perform on Glastonbury’s Pyramid Stage, opened for Chris Brown’s 11:11 tour, and became the most-streamed female artist in Nigeria for the fourth consecutive year. In 2025 she won the MOBO Award for Best International Act, the BET Award for Best International Act, and signed an international management deal with Jay-Z’s Roc Nation. Her third studio album, Starr Girl, was released in August 2026, and in October 2026 she became the first African artist to perform at an NFL International Games halftime show in London.

She has also become a fashion and cultural figure: named to the Forbes 30 Under 30 music list in 2023, celebrated for a bold personal style she describes as Afrosoul, and mentored publicly by R&B icon Kelly Rowland, who joined the remix of “Bloody Samaritan.” Her sound blends Afropop, R&B and alté, with lyrics that mix English, Nigerian Pidgin and Yoruba around themes of love, empowerment and freedom.

Net Worth & Income

As of 2026, Ayra Starr’s net worth is estimated at $1.5 million (approx. ₦2 billion). Her income comes from music streaming and record sales, live performances and international tours, brand endorsement deals, and royalties as a songwriter. With close to a billion streams on “Rush” alone and a catalogue of charting singles, streaming revenue forms a major part of her earnings.

Personal Life & Family

Ayra Starr is close to her family and often credits her mother for encouraging her to pursue singing professionally. Her older brother Damilola is a guitarist and songwriter who collaborated with her in her early years. She is not married and has kept her romantic life private, stating in interviews that she prefers to focus on her music. She reportedly lost her father shortly before her career took off, a period she has described as one of the most difficult of her life.

Last updated: October 2026