You would agree with me that it is a soothing feeling when what was yours that everyone once despised becomes what everyone now loves. As a continent, there has always been this substandard feeling. It is like the times of slavery had automatically put the continent under its colonisers even after freedom was announced.
If feels the continents with pride, I imagine the Nations secretly smiling feeling content with themselves. Times have changed and the one who seem substandard has raised before many a standard. What am I talking about? AFROBEATS. Yeah, I am talking about the fusion of juju, high life, hip life, azonto beats, naija beats among others. I am talking about different sounds flowing from West Africa and the diaspora. As I write, I can hear sounds of Bass guitar,sakara,drums,guitar,horns,Hammond organ,keyboards,percussion Ogene,saxophone,shekere and vocals trust me it is heavenly. It is such a relief that not only Africans but the whole world has fallen in love with this wonderful sounds.
Initially, Africans due to sake of globalisation adopted the American style of music. We desperately wanted to be put on the map, to be known. Recently however, the continent seem to have accepted who they are and fully embraced it. Afrobeat as a style of music has won global traction as the youths of the continent themselves embraces their identity. Artist continues to accept their cultural heritage.
Want to know what they say about acceptance? Self-acceptance is the foundation for constant growth and positive change. Between 2017 to 2022, afrobeat experienced 550%growth in streams on Spotify according report on Wikipedia.
The launch of MTV Base in Africa did a good job in putting Africa on larger platform. However it was until the launch of choice Fm new afrobeat radio show that Afrobeat began to receive more attention and started to trend.
According to information found on Wikipedia, viral dance steps also did a good job propagating afrobeats. In 2011, Nigerian singer Iyanya released “Kukere”. The song became popular and known for its adaption of a traditional dance called Etighi. Another dance was popularised by Nigerian artist Davido when he released “Skelewu” in 2013.
British afrobeat artist came up from 2012 to 2013. Artists like Mista Silva, Vibe Squad, Weray Ent, Naira Marley, Kwamz, Flava, Moelogo, and Timbo.
According to Wikipedia, June 2018, Kanye West released an albilum titled Ye and coincidentally Burna Boy had a song named Ye. So Kanye’s fans were able to listen to Burna Boy when they were searching for their beloved artist. It lead to 200% spike in streams for Burna Boy.
Burna Boy has grown to become a leading figure in Afrobeat. He has sold out stadium in UK and US and has ten grammy nomination. He also became the most streamed African artist.
In September 2021, Wizkid’s track titled”Essence” was the first African song to be certified platinum.
That same year and the same month, Ckay’s song “Love Nwatiti” made it to the Billboard hot 100. It became first in some countries.
Rema single, “Calm down” in 2022 went viral. He made a remix with Selena Gomez that made it to the number 3 on Billboard Hot 100.
Davido’s collaboration with Drake in 2019 got 2 million views on YouTube within 24 hours. That was the first time a Nigerian Artist had that much view.
Indeed it seems like now is the best time to be alive when we talk about the growth Afrobeat is currently experiencing. There are alot of firsts and alot of breaking of records.
The males are not the only one making waves. Although it is a male dominated area, females are also breaking records.
Tiwa Savage has not only pushed boundaries but have broken down global barriers. She has also collaborated with amazing international artists like Beyoncé.
Tems was recognised for her work with Wizkid. She has also won a Grammy for her work with Future on” Wait for U”.
Afrobeat has also evolved and artists has added amapiano which is a South African genre. This has increased global recognition and cultural intervention.
We could attribute the increased global acceptance of Afrobeat to various factors. There is the increase in global collaboration. It seems global artists has developed interest in the sound and constantly reaches out for collaboration.
We cannot forget the influence of social media and streaming platforms. The world is going more global and it is effective to use social media as a platform to publicise our music.
Festivals and concerts are also constantly held globally. The Pride Africans show has a huge impact on the global acceptance.
Edited by: Oladeji Olabisi
