Nigeria and South Africa dominate. Dakar, Bamako and Kinshasa wait on the algorithm.
When people say African music is having a "global moment," they are often talking about only a small part of the continent.
While Nigeria's Afrobeats and South Africa's amapiano rightfully claim global stages, the industry's myopic focus on these markets is drowning out the sonic innovations happening from Dakar's mbalax fusion to Kinshasa's ndombolo evolution. Africa's musical diversity,54 countries, thousands of languages, countless genres, deserves distribution networks and streaming algorithms that amplify more than just Lagos and Johannesburg. The continent's true global moment will arrive when a Malian guitarist or Zimbabwean rapper can reach international audiences without first having to sound like they're from Victoria Island.
While Nigeria's Afrobeats and South Africa's amapiano rightfully claim global stages, the industry's myopic focus on these markets is drowning out the sonic innovations happening from Dakar's mbalax fusion to Kinshasa's ndombolo evolution. Africa's musical diversity,54 countries, thousands of languages, countless genres, deserves distribution networks and streaming algorithms that amplify more than just Lagos and Johannesburg. The continent's true global moment will arrive when a Malian guitarist or Zimbabwean rapper can reach international audiences without first having to sound like they're from Victoria Island.
SUMMARY BY STRATA-AF™ · ORIGINAL REPORTING BY EGYPT INDEPENDENT
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