Spotify has unveiled a global project tagged “Afrobeats: Culture in Motion”, a documentation of the genre’s remarkable evolution over the past five years and the creatives propelling its worldwide influence.
Phiona Okumu, Spotify’s Head of Music, Sub-Saharan Africa, announced the initiative in a statement on Monday in Lagos.
According to Okumu, the project underscores how Afrobeats has grown from a regional rhythm into a global cultural force, generating over 240 million discoveries on Spotify worldwide in the last 12 months alone.
“The launch is centered on a new Spotify documentary, Culture in Motion, which follows the next generation of Afrobeats artistes,” she said.
“This is complemented by an immersive microsite on Spotify’s newsroom that breaks down movement across five key pillars using exclusive interviews, context and fresh Spotify listening data.”
Okumu explained that the microsite’s data provides a deep dive into the genre’s ongoing transformation.
She revealed that Afrobeats is becoming more emotionally resonant, with introspective and charged vocals now accounting for 38 per cent of global streams.
“Its reach is expanding rapidly, with listenership in Latin America growing by more than 180 per cent year-over-year, and streams in Brazil alone are up 500 per cent since 2020.
“Female artistes are also at the forefront of the genre’s global success, with Tems becoming the first African female artiste to surpass one billion Spotify streams for a single track.
“At the same time, the visual language of Afrobeats is shaping global culture, while fan communities are playing a vital role in discovery, acting as the new tastemakers and driving the genre’s growth in real time,” Okumu noted.
She further disclosed that Nigerians streamed more than 180 million hours of Afrobeats this year alone, with Lagos, Abuja and Port Harcourt topping the list of streaming cities.
“Nigerian Gen Z listeners connect with Afrobeats on a deeper level, with their top three listening moods for the genre being ‘whiny’, ‘island vibes’, and ‘playful’.
“This passion has also fueled a powerful, community-driven movement that started in Nigeria, with fan-made Afrobeats playlists growing by nearly 3,000 percent in the last decade worldwide.
“Notably, a new sub-genre, Afro-Adura, has seen incredible growth with streams increasing over 4,000 percent,” she added.
