Five years after its inauguration in Nigeria, Spotify says music listening in Nigeria has grown at an average rate of 163.5 per cent, underscoring the speed at which the country has emerged as a global streaming force.
In a statement made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Lagos, Spotify reported triple digit year-on-year surges in its early years and sustained momentum through 2025.
The platform, which entered the market in February 2021, described the journey as one marked by rapid cultural acceleration.
Spotify said at the heart of that growth was Afrobeats, which recorded a +5,022 per cent increase in streams locally between 2021 and 2025.
The platform said other genres also witnessed remarkable expansion.
According to Spotify, Amapiano surged by +10,330 per cent, Gospel and Praise grew by +5,499 per cent, Hip-hop and Rap rose by +3,020 per cent while R&B climbed +2,602 per cent.
The platform further said language had become another growth engine with indigenous language listening at +554 per cent in 2024 and +87 per cent in 2025 within Nigeria.
Globally, the platform said indigenous language streams rose +141 per cent in 2024 and +41 per cent in 2025, reflecting what it described as a growing appetite for local-language storytelling and sound.
Spotify said that from day one, listening habits reflected global curiosity.
The first track streamed in Nigeria at launch was “到此為止” by Shiga Lin, reinforcing Spotify’s view that Nigerian users are curious, eclectic and always open to discovery.
The platform noted that across five years, the most-streamed artistes in Nigeria include Burna Boy, Davido, Asake, Wizkid and Seyi Vibez.
It said among the most replayed songs are ‘Remember’ and ‘Lonely At The Top’ by Asake, ‘Kese (Dance)’ by Wizkid, ‘Doha’ by Seyi Vibez, and ‘With You’ by Davido featuring Omah Lay.
The platform said the number of Nigerian artistes on the platform had grown by +158 per cent since its launch while users have created more than 25 million playlists over the period.
According to Spotify, in 2025 alone, Nigeria recorded over 1.4 million play hours on the platform.
It said podcast consumption was also expanding with more than 59 billion total podcast hours streamed since its launch.
The platform also noted that user behaviour revealed a young and adventurous market with the average listener aged 26.a
Spotify said that in recent months, Nigerians streamed an average of 150 different artistes, evidence of what the platform called a young, discovery-driven audience.
Industry observers say the figures confirm Nigeria’s cultural influence but warned that rapid consumption growth must translate into sustainable earnings for creators.
They noted that while streams were rising sharply, questions remained around royalty transparency, equitable revenue distribution and whether emerging and regional acts benefit sufficiently from algorithm-driven visibility.
Stakeholders recommend stronger monetisation systems, clearer royalty frameworks and improved access to data analytics to help artistes better understand and grow their audiences.
Analysts also view the surge in indigenous language streams as a major export opportunity, urging structured global playlist placements, improved metadata tagging and strategic branding support to sustain momentum.
On podcasts, they called for deeper investment in local advertising frameworks, training and creator tools to ensure that the 59 billion streaming hours convert into viable careers.
