Category: MUSIC


  • The Most-Streamed African Artists of 2025 And What Their Success Teaches Us

    As the streaming numbers roll in for 2025, one message is loud and clear: African artists are no longer waiting for global permission theyโ€™re earning global attention and rewriting what success looks like. The data is compelling. According to YouTube Music figures, Rema reached 223 million streams globally in Q1 alone, placing him as Nigeriaโ€™s…

  • The Rise of Afrobeats Collectives and Joint Projects

    For years, Afrobeats was driven by individual ambition, artists chasing solo glory, defining their unique sounds, and competing for dominance across charts and streaming platforms. But the new wave tells a different story. From producers forming creative hubs to artists building communities around shared vision, the rise of collectives and joint projects has become one…

  • Asake and Portable: Two Sides of the Street Revolution

    The street has always been the heartbeat of Nigerian music noisy, honest, and brutally expressive. But in the last few years, the street stopped whispering and started leading. It became the pulse of Afrobeats, the slang of the city, and the rhythm of survival. And if there are two faces that define this raw uprising,…

  • Influencers Are the New Plug: How Social Media Took Over Nigerian Music Promotion

    There was a time when getting a song to blow in Nigeria followed a clear formula: radio spins, Alaba market distribution, and maybe a co-sign from a top DJ. But in todayโ€™s music economy, those rules barely apply. The gatekeepers have changed, and so has the pipeline. In 2025, the real plug isnโ€™t a radio…

  • Why Music Royalties Differ Around the World

    Music is a universal language, but the way artists get paid for it is far from universal. Around the world, royalty systems the backbone of how musicians, songwriters, and producers earn vary dramatically from one region to another. What an artist makes from a million streams in Nigeria is not the same as what an…

  • The Era of Teasers: How Afrobeats Turned Snippets into Strategy

    There was a time when an artist dropped a single, fans discovered it organically, and the buzz grew from there. But today, we live in an age where music doesnโ€™t just drop its teased. The snippet comes first, then the reactions, the TikTok trends, the countdowns, and finally, the release. Afrobeats has fully embraced this…

  • The New Architects of Afrobeats: When Producers Became the Artists

    From the Booth to the Spotlight: Nigerian Producers Leading Afrobeatsโ€™ Global Reign There was a time when producers in the Nigerian music industry were the unsung architects the invisible hands shaping rhythm and melody while artists took the glory. But in todayโ€™s Afrobeats landscape, the lines have blurred. The men who once sat quietly behind…

  • Stream First, Feel Later: How the Numbers Game Is Killing Music Quality

    Once upon a time, artists chased sound. Now, they chase streams.And that, right there, might be the problem. In todayโ€™s music industry, numbers are the new talent. Billboard charts, Spotify streams, YouTube views theyโ€™ve become the measure of greatness. But somewhere between โ€œ#1 on Apple Musicโ€ and โ€œ100 million streams in 48 hours,โ€ something sacred…

  • The Fall of Alaba Market: How Digitalization Ended an Era in Nigerian Music

    For nearly two decades, Alaba International Market in Lagos was the heart of Nigeriaโ€™s music economy. Long before streaming platforms, DSPs, and social media marketing, Alaba was where hits were made not in the studio, but on the streets. The marketโ€™s powerful network of music distributors, marketers, and CD vendors determined which songs reached listeners…

  • Teni and Gunna Tease โ€œSPEEDโ€: Afrobeats Meets Trap in a New Global Wave

    Late October 2025, Teni dropped a snippet of her upcoming collaboration with Gunna a track titled โ€œSPEEDโ€. The clip is bold: fast-paced, slick production, Teniโ€™s distinctive vocal energy meeting Gunnaโ€™s rhythmic trap flow. The announcement has stirred fans across Nigeria, the US and beyond and for good reason. Teni has long carved a path through…