Written for Turning Heads. Originally published here
The release of Lion King: The Gift in 2019, the album produced by Beyoncé featuring many West African artists started a passionate debate at school. It was between the East Africans and the Nigerians over whether it was right that no East African artist had been featured on the album. I, an East African, found it absurd that a movie based on what is a Kenyan landscape which also popularised the Kiswahili phrase ‘Hakuna Matata’ did not even feature a single East African artist. Yet there were many that would have done justice to the sounds of East Africa- Diamond Platnumz, Sauti Sol, and Irene Ntale to name a few. My Nigerian friend, on the other hand, said you can’t compare the Nigerian music industry to the East African ones. Plus, Nigerian music is just better, she quipped. I rolled my eyes. Initially, our debate left me wondering whether the term ‘Afro’ beats is a misnomer.
If there was an African Music League, there’s no doubt that Nigeria would be topping the table. With South Africa at a close second. Judging this purely by the numbers, Statista predicted that by 2023 the Nigerian music industry could bring in $44 million in 2023. Perhaps it comes as no surprise that it’s so popular due to its catchy beats and relatively easy to dance to. Furthermore, Afrobeats has had an impact on how Africans perceive being African. In his podcast, Have You Heard George's Podcast, George the Poet described Afrobeats as a source of pride in one's African identity for first and second-generation immigrants in the UK. But I think the sentiment extends to the continent as well. No wonder it has grown as big as it has.
Afrobeats’ popularity can be attributed to so much more than its vibe. Serious levels of investment have been made for decades into developing and expanding this sound. This was met by the rise of streaming platforms such as Spotify and Apple Music which made this music widely available. Not to mention the direct investment into cultivating talent. From the early days of Mavins Records to Mr Eazi’s recent Empawa project, much investment has been made into developing Afrobeats. Furthermore, the migration of Nigerian and African people to all four corners of the world lay the foundation for Afrobeats to have an audience everywhere in the world. This audience has proved essential to the worldwide spread of the sound.
Although it started in Nigeria, Afrobeats is a blend of hip-hop, Congolese rhumba, zouk and of course traditional Nigerian music. Essentially Afrobeats is a blend of sounds from across Africa and the diaspora. In the past few years, there have been many collaborations between Nigerian artists and those from other countries on the continent. These collaborations have resulted in hits such as Afrikan Star by Sauti Sol and Burna Boy. Arguably, the growth of Afrobeats lay the groundwork for other genres of African music to gain popularity. In making African music mainstream, genres such as Amapiano have been able to spread continent and worldwide. With over a billion streams of Amapiano music on Spotify and Apple, this sound as well is contending for Nigeria’s top spot.
I don’t think it’s a coincidence that currently, the two biggest genres in African music happen to come from two of the biggest economies on the continent. The commercialisation of Afrobeats has led to collaborations with western artists such as Selena Gomez, Camilla Cabello and of course, Ed Sheeran among others. By global pop artists jumping onto Afrobeats songs, greater attention has been drawn to the genre. With a wider audience, hopefully as well the opportunities for up-and-coming Afrobeats artists will grow too. The growth of social media platforms has served African artists well as a means of distributing their music. It is estimated that revenues coming from digital streaming in Africa will reach $500 million in 2025- up from $100 million in 2017. Afrobeats’ growth will certainly as well reap economic benefits for the continent as well as its stakeholders.
But what about East African music? Collaborations with Burna Boy by Sauti Sol and Diamond Platnumz helped raise their profile- even winning Sauti Sol a Grammy Certificate. Yet even before these collaborations, their songs were popular throughout the region. With the evidential benefits of a robust East African creative economy, the British Council predicts that it will grow in the following years with the increased private sector and government investment. Business aside and just looking at the new wave of East African music- Kohen Jaycee, Joshua Baraka, Mike Kayihura and Nikita Kering’ (links to some of their favourite songs of mine) to name a few, the future of music in the region looks bright.
Although Afrobeats, the biggest sound on the continent, originated in Nigeria and is currently dominated by Nigerian artists it has helped pave the way for the growth of other forms of African music as well. Besides, it provides jobs and brings in revenue to the continent. The Lion King album is not the marker of what makes African music incredible, perhaps my frustration was misplaced. I still think the album could have done with a couple of songs with some East African artists. Nonetheless, that does not detract from the fact that Afrobeats has and continues to serve all African music.
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