Streaming boom creates revenue and genre revolution

Africa's music scene isn't just growing - it's exploding! Across Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), established stars are pushing boundaries, while sounds like Afrobeats and Amapiano continue to captivate audiences worldwide. This explosion is more than just a trend, it's backed by impressive numbers. According to the 2024 IFPI report, the Sub-Saharan Africa market boasts the world's fastest-music growing revenue with a staggering 24.7% growth increase. This growth is fueled by a surge in paid streaming services, which now contributes 24.5% of the revenue. Notably, Sub-Saharan Africa is the only region surpassing 20% growth.

The Nigerian music revolution: Powered by streaming

Nigeria, sometimes referred to as the Giant of Africa, has undoubtedly contributed massively to this growth. With a population of approximately 230 million and being home to some of Africa’s biggest artists, the country’s music scene is a force to be reckoned with. Streaming platforms like Spotify have been a game-changer, allowing artists to reach audiences beyond their borders and benefit financially from their craft.

Spotify launched its annual report, Loud & Clear, to increase transparency in the music industry by sharing data on Spotify’s royalty payments and breaking down the global streaming economy, the players and the process. For the second year in a row, Spotify is releasing the data on earnings specifically for Nigerian artists on the platform.

 Here are the key figures from Spotify's 2024 Loud & Clear Report on the Nigerian music streaming:

• Streaming royalties for Nigerian artists on Spotify alone exceeded 25 billion NGN in 2023, double the prior year. (2,500% increase since 2017)

• The number of Nigerian artists earning over 10 million NGN in royalties quadrupled since 2018

• Over half of these royalties went to independent artists or labels, showcasing the democratizing power of streaming

• Spotify listeners discovered Nigerian artists nearly 950 million times in 2023

• Nigerian artists own over 80% of the tracks featured on Nigeria’s daily top 50 chart in 2023

• Over 1,400 Nigerian artists added to Spotify editorial playlists in 2023