Sony Pixel Power calrec Sony

Sounds of Africa: Creators Bring the Continent to Life on Spotify

25/05/2022

May 25 marks Africa Day, which recognizes the creation of the African Union and offers a chance to reflect on the progress that has been made across the continent since 1963. To commemorate the occasion, Spotify is celebrating local voices through the new Sounds of Africa campaign.

The continent is home to an incredible array of talented individuals who are sharing their unique creativity, storytelling, and sounds with the world. So from social media to on-platform efforts, this campaign spotlights emerging African talent in music and podcasting.

African creators are doing amazing things in the music and audio content creation space. Moreover, the stories of this crop of creatives are helping others find their passions and their voices, said Jocelyne Muhutu-Remy, Spotify's Managing Director for Sub-Saharan Africa.

They're teachers, friends, and companions on people's daily commute. They're ambassadors for the continent, sharing the sounds of Africa. And, at Spotify, we are committed to helping them do just that, Jocelyne added.

Spotify also announced the creation of the Africa Podcast Grant to help highlight voices from the continent. The $100,000 fund is open to 10 creators, and they can be up-and-coming or established. This fund aims to amplify underrepresented stories and perspectives in podcasting.

As a part of Sounds of Africa, Spotify is highlighting six African artists and six African podcasters through a digital-first campaign to drive users to their various Spotify pages. For the Record caught up with each creator to learn more about what Africa Day means to them.

Feyikemi Abudu and Jola Ayeye: I Said What I Said podcast

Africa Day, for us, is a day to celebrate Africans and people of African descent all over the world. It allows us to celebrate our growing cultural impacts on the globe while highlighting our diversity in different elements of art, music, fashion, food, and culture. We should always pay homage to Africans who stand out and who have made an effort to place Africa on the map. It should be a time to celebrate the champs of African creatives, businesses, and people across the continent.

Joan, Kibz, Nyamita, and Owen: The Sandwich Podcast

Africa Day reminds us of the sense of individuality that we have been able to achieve as a continent and celebrates the uniqueness of our African culture. This is also an opportunity for different creators to interact. This brings us unity, which we have always celebrated and will always continue to celebrate each and every day.

Eli Mwenda and Oscar Koome: Mantalk.ke podcast

Africa Day for us is a time of African renaissance, African celebration, and people celebrating a continent that is rich with culture and wildlife.

Taymesan: Tea With Tay podcast

Africa Day is for celebrating Africa's heritage and cultural impact on the world while highlighting our uniqueness and diversity, expressed through music, art, craft, advocacy, and fashion.

It is also very important to recognize outstanding Africans whose efforts have served to place Africa on the global map. The triumphs of African creatives, leaders of industry, and pioneers from across the continent must be celebrated as a reminder of how special we are.

Nicole Engelbrecht: True Crime South Africa podcast

For me, Africa Day is about celebrating the immense pool of talent we have on this continent. Whether it's singing or podcasting, Africans have amazing stories to tell through their art, and I think Africa Day provides us with a platform for more people to hear and celebrate our uniqueness.

Gugulethu Nyatsumba: After School Is After School with Sis G.U podcast

Africa Day is a day where we get to celebrate our continent's rich cultural identity and our many different heritages. To me, it's a day where I get to be that much prouder of my roots, my people, and my continent. I try my best to learn something new about this beautiful environment I live in.

LADIPOE

To be honest, I feel like every day is Africa Day. But I'm grateful that it's now a day that we're using to celebrate the fact that there are 54 countries that make up this continent and that so much can be achieved when we move in one accord. It's really something to celebrate.

I feel like I became a much better writer when I began to tell the stories of my people and myself within my country and within my continent because there's no place like Africa. The stories are a way to connect with the people. So when I sing how far with Lagos on a Monday/traffic is as bad as the news on the front page/judging by my salary/I might as well be unpaid,' trust me, the people who are living where I live understand what I'm talking about.

Prey

As an artist, Africa Day means reflecting on all the influences the continent has given me. There is so much raw talent here, and the range of sounds is crazy. The more I become a student of my art, the more I see how the diversity of the sounds I'm drawn to-everything from jazz to soul, funk, and folk-end up bringing me right back to this continent.

Living in, and listening to, Africa already affects the kinds of rhythms I come up with. When I grew up as a kid, I loved the sound of Nollywood, and the drama of it. The soundtrack literally tells you the whole story because it's so vivid. There's also the fact that there are so many languages here. Every language is its own song, and hearing all Nigeria's languages has definitely influenced my melodies and harmonies-the flow, the inflections, cadences, and the drops.

I try to incorporate sounds from my part of Nigeria specifically, like the drum patterns, chanting vocals, and Pidgin English. My dad is from Okrika in the south of Nigeria, and my Mom is Igbo in the southeast, so I grew up hearing their languages, and
LINK: https://newsroom.spotify.com/2022-05-25/sounds-of-africa-creators-brin...
See more stories from spotify

Most recent headlines

05/01/2027

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be demoed at CES 2026

Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...

01/06/2026

Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026

January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026 Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...

02/05/2026

Dalet Flex LTS Delivers Smarter Search, Faster Editing, and an AI-Ready Foundation for Modern Media

Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...

01/05/2026

NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to Integrate Dolby's Full Suite of Premium Picture and Sound Innovations

January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...

01/04/2026

DOLBY AND DOUYIN EMPOWER THE NEXT GENERATON OF CREATORS WITH DOLBY VISION

January 4 2026, 18:00 (PST) DOLBY AND DOUYIN EMPOWER THE NEXT GENERATON OF CREATORS WITH DOLBY VISION Douyin Users Can Now Create And Share Videos With Stun...

13/03/2026

SVG Sit-Down: Net Insight's Andreas Eriksson on Scalable, Predictable Live-Media Infrastructure

Recently named CEO Andreas Eriksson has taken the helm at Net Insight at a pivot...

13/03/2026

Scripps Sports To Broadcast First PWHL Game on National TV in U.S.

Scripps Sports and Ally Financial are partnering with the Professional Women's Hockey League (PWHL) to broadcast its first game on national linear televisio...

13/03/2026

Disney+ Follows in ESPN's Footsteps With Launch of Verts Vertical Video Feed on Mobile

Disney+ has launched Verts, a vertical video feed on its U.S. mobile app, markin...

13/03/2026

LTN and Appear Announce Integrated Solution for Live Event Video Transport and Distribution

LTN, a managed IP video transport company, and Appear, a live production technol...

13/03/2026

PFL Signs Betting Data and Streaming Agreement With Sportradar

The Professional Fighters League (PFL) has announced an agreement with Sportradar for global betting data and streaming rights. Under the deal, Sportradar becom...

13/03/2026

SVG GameDay, Ep. 7: Milwaukee Brewers' Jami Patton - Game Pres with the Brew Crew

In-venue and creative video staffers at the professional and collegiate level ha...

13/03/2026

Peacock To Add Vertical Video Option for Live NBA Games

The streamer will be the first entertainment platform to offer AI-enabled vertical video for live games, starting with the NBA...

13/03/2026

Ease Live Deploys Interactive Overlay Platform on Red Bull TV for Premier Padel

Ease Live, an Evertz company specializing in interactive graphical overlays, has deployed its platform on Red Bull TV for Premier Padel coverage. The deployment...

13/03/2026

ESPN's Andy Jacobson on Pushing the Envelope to Debut MNF Playbook'

Monday Night Football, ESPN's premiere NFL property, has continued to be improved and upgraded from a production perspective. Alternative broadcasts are aug...

13/03/2026

NAB 2026: Net Insight Introduces Nimbra 520 Media Processing Node

At NAB Show 2026, Net Insight (booth W1653) is introducing the Nimbra 520, a high-density media processing node for live contribution and distribution across ma...

13/03/2026

NAB 2026: Harmonic Takes Wraps Off Spectrum X Plus Media Server

Harmonic (booth W2831) has announced Spectrum X Plus, the newest generation of its Spectrum X media server, offering double the channel density of previous gene...

13/03/2026

Riedel Communications Appoints Jan Schaffner as VP of Managed Technology Americas

Riedel Communications has announced the expansion of its Managed Technology Divi...

13/03/2026

NAB 2026: Telestream Launches UP, a Cloud-Native Ingest and Monitoring Solution

Telestream (booth W1503) has announced the expansion of Telestream Cloud Services with the introduction of UP, a cloud-native solution for ingest, orchestration...

13/03/2026

It's Showtime! Production Pros Bring Awards Shows, Festivals, and Other Events to Life

From awards ceremonies and sports honors shows to festivals and fan conventions,...

13/03/2026

Overtime Partners with Metro by T-Mobile for OTE and Overtime Select Basketball Leagues

Overtime has announced a partnership with Metro by T-Mobile, naming Metro the Of...

13/03/2026

NAB 2026: Calrec to Showcase IP Ecosystem and Plethora of New Products

At NAB 2026, Calrec (booth C6907) will IP Ecosystem powered by True Control 2.0, integrating the company's IP-native Argo consoles - including the U.S. debu...

13/03/2026

Ratings Roundup: FOX Smashes WBC Records, ESPN Nets Best College Hoops Audience in 10+ Years

Ratings Roundup is a rundown of recent ratings news derived from press releases ...

13/03/2026

A New Era of Personalization: Shape Your Taste Profile on Spotify

Spotify has always been built around your taste. More than 80% of listeners say personalization is what they love most about us. Now we're taking that even ...

13/03/2026

Spotify Debuts Legends Club for Popular German-Language Podcasts With Kaulitz Hills'

The new Spotify Legends Club has opened its doors. Its members: select German-sp...

13/03/2026

Klevgrand release OneShot2

Pushing drum sampler technology into new territories The latest version of Klevgrand's software drum sampler has just arrived, boasting a newly designe...

13/03/2026

IK Multimedia update ARC On-Ear

Expanded headphone support & engine improvements IK Multimedia's recently introduced ARC On-Ear system brings the power of their monitoring-correction s...

13/03/2026

UVI introduce Mosaiq 26

Extra sound collections, more presets & new Keys category UVI's rhythm and pattern instrument has just received a major update that introduces four new ...

13/03/2026

Missionized Business Jets: Fielded and Flying

Over a year ago, L3Harris delivered the first missionized Bombardier Global 6500 aircraft for U.S. Indo-Pacific Command. Two ATHENA-R platforms now average 400+...

13/03/2026

GFiber and Stonepeak's Astound Broadband to Merge

Share Copy link Facebook X Linkedin Bluesky Email...

13/03/2026

Harmonic Redefines the Economics of Video Playout with Ne...

Harmonic (NASDAQ: HLIT) today announced Spectrum X Plus, the newest generation of its Spectrum X media server, offering double the channel density of previous ...

13/03/2026

Historic Ewing Covenant Church Revitalizes Worship Experi...

When Ewing Covenant Church made the decision to return to its original, historic building, affectionately called 1867 Sanctuary for weekly worship, the congre...

13/03/2026

Marshall Electronics Launches CV574 WP its First 4K All I...

Marshall Electronics introduces its first all-IP 4K POV camera, the CV574-WP, at NAB 2026 (Booth C8339). The CV574-WP supports NDI |HX, providing ultra-efficien...

13/03/2026

Net Insight launches Nimbra 520 - Predictable Live Media...

At NAB Show 2026, Net Insight introduces Nimbra 520, a high-density media processing node designed to simplify live contribution and distribution across both ma...

13/03/2026

Abandon Editorial Signs With Michal Dimitri for West Coast Representation

Abandon Editorial Signs With Micha l Dimitri for West Coast Representation Brie Clayton March 12, 2026 0 Comments Abandon Editorial is excited to part...

13/03/2026

Documentary The Bulldogs Shot and Edited with Blackmagic Design

Documentary The Bulldogs Shot and Edited with Blackmagic Design Brie Clayton March 12, 2026 0 Comments Editorial tools helped shape film in real time,...

13/03/2026

AE Captions as Fast as CapCut - No Plugins

AE Captions as Fast as CapCut - No Plugins Graham Quince March 12, 2026 0 Comments Stop wasting hours clicking through nested compositions and manuall...

13/03/2026

New Music USA and Berklee Institute of Jazz and Gender Justice Announce 2026 Next Jazz Legacy Cohort

New Music USA and Berklee Institute of Jazz and Gender Justice Announce 2026 Nex...

13/03/2026

Sky Adds Blood on Snow to Original Film Slate in Acquisition Headlined by Benedict Cumberbatch and Aaron TaylorJohnson

Friday 13 March 2026 Sky Adds Blood on Snow to Original Film Slate in Acquisiti...

13/03/2026

RT announces Rick O'Shea as new presenter on RT Radio 1's Arena

RT has announced today that Rick O'Shea is the new presenter of Arena RT Radio 1's flagship weeknight arts and culture programme. Rick has been pres...

13/03/2026

Lights! Camera! Action! The 98th Oscars set to air live as RT backs the Irish nominees

Lights! Camera! Action! The 98th Oscars set to air live as RT backs the Irish n...

12/03/2026

Milano Cortina 2026: Yospace helps ad-funded rights-holders claim advertising gold

Staines-upon-Thames, UK, 11th March, 2026 - Yospace, the trusted leader in Dyna...

12/03/2026

Utah Scientific Expands Technology Partner Program With Integrations From Audinate, Bitfocus, and Skaarhoj

Utah Scientific Expands Technology Partner Program With Integrations From Audina...

12/03/2026

Techex Hires Matt McKee as Senior Director, Sales, Americas

Techex, a global expert in live video solutions over IP and cloud, announces the appointment of Matt McKee as Senior Director, Sales, Americas, further strength...

12/03/2026

KOKUSAI DENKI Electric America Welcomes Mondae Hott as Regional Sales Manager, Northeast

KOKUSAI DENKI Electric America has appointed Mondae Hott as Regional Sales Manag...

12/03/2026

Interra Systems Focuses on Streaming-First QC, Monitoring, and Responsible AI Workflows at 2026 NAB Show

At the 2026 NAB Show, Interra Systems will showcase its latest advancements in a...

12/03/2026

15th National Games of China Features Expansive Unified Broadcast Network

The 15th National Games of China concluded after a two-week celebration of athletic excellence and regional collaboration. Held from Nov. 9-21 across Guangdong,...

12/03/2026

SVG in Indy: Butler University Students Get Live-Sports Experience via On-Campus Studio, Production Truck

Live-production academic program Butler Sports Live produced a total of 40 fall-...

12/03/2026

Lawo Delivers Fully IPBased Video Infrastructure for University of Nebraska's HuskerVision

The University of Nebraska's HuskerVision has completed the second phase of ...

12/03/2026

University of Illinois Upgrades Game-Day Production with New Hybrid IP Control Room

Grass Valley and integration partner Tab M Solutions have completed Phase 1 of a...

12/03/2026

CBS Sports Turns to University of Cincinnati's Control Room and Staff for Two Big 12 Men's Basketball Broadcasts

The broadcaster expands its campus-production model as the university handles tw...