The Biggest Music Industries in Africa
The rapid rise of today's African music has created a need for a deep dive into it's music industry.

The global music industry is bigger than it has ever been. With billions of dollars in revenue, it continues to grow at a staggering rate. New genres are rising to become big players on the global stage and compete with the biggest genres in the world such as hip-hop and R&B. One of these new genres is Afrobeats. Or Afropop. Or Afrofusion. Almost anything with “Afro” in it. I’m not here to just talk about a genre, though.

The explosion of Afrobeats is just a reflection of the growth African music industries are enjoying across the board. Music revenue grew by over 34 percent in 2022 in Sub-Saharan Africa alone, a world record. In this article, I’ll talk about the biggest music industries in Africa to show how different regions are contributing to this growth.

Nigeria

Without a doubt, the Nigerian music industry is by far the biggest in Africa. Despite struggling in many sectors that have kept it a third-world country, Nigeria has never struggled in the media and entertainment sector. Alongside Nollywood, the Nigerian movie industry, music has been one of the biggest exports from Nigeria. The Afrobeats explosion has been spearheaded mostly by Nigerian artists too.

The likes of Burna Boy, Davido, and Wizkid have been at the top of their game in the last few years. Two of them have won Grammys in the last three years. They’ve also led the charge of Nigerian artists who have flooded the global market, selling out arenas all over the world. The main genre is Afrobeats, but that’s not the only thing on offer.

Nigerian hip-hop has also been a major part of the industry. Heavyweights such as M.I., Vector, Jesse Jagz, Ladipoe, and several others are leading the charge on that front. More recently, the lines between the different genres are getting blurred. Pure, unadulterated hip-hop is now being mixed with a dash of Afrobeats to create an indigenous Nigerian rap genre.

With such a large population, of over 200 million people, Nigeria is also seen as a great place to expand to by international artists. Beyonce, Chris Brown, Khalid, Stormzy, Ed Sheeran, and a host of other foreign artists have all collaborated with Nigerian artists in a bid to break into that market. Another example of the massive impact Nigeria’s huge population can wield is Enisa. After showing support for the EndSARS protest, she gained millions of new followers and trended number one on Twitter as the Nigerian youth rushed to show her love. Her career hasn’t been the same.

That’s the Nigerian spice.

South Africa

It’s safe to assume that South Africa is the second biggest music industry in Africa. Valued at over $100 million, the country once plagued by an apartheid government has blossomed in the entertainment industry among others. Perhaps the only challenger to Nigeria in the movie and music industry, South Africans have grown massively. My favorite genre of music from South Africa is hip-hop.

While Nigerian music is dominating across the board, the South African hip-hop industry is arguably performing better than Nigeria’s. Nasty C, AKA, and Caspper Nyovvest among others have led the South African troupe of rappers. That said, South African artists are also heavily involved in the Afrobeats boom. Amapiano, a new production style that has grown big in recent times, first came out of South Africa.

The best part about the rivalry between Nigerian and South African artists is that they also collaborate. So it’s a healthy competition that isn’t fuelled by hate or any toxic feelings. As a result, both industries continue to grow bigger and bigger.

Benin

You’ve probably heard of Angelique Kidjo, a five-time Grammy winner for Best World Music Album. She’s from Benin, a small country that shares a border with Nigeria. The best thing about the music industry in Benin is that it’s a melting pot of different genres from different countries.

Highlife from Ghana; Rumba from Congo; rock, soul, and punk from America; and cabaret from France are all major parts of the popular music in Benin. You’ll also find elements of many other genres, though. As small a country as it is, Benin will be buoyed by the fact that they have produced a five-time Grammy winner. The hope is that it doesn’t end with her.

Ghana

From rap to Afrobeats and highlife, Ghana’s music industry has seen a recent surge in artists and interest from fans. Despite being seen as a younger sibling to the Nigerian music industry, Ghana’s relationship with the bigger country has been up and down. There has been plenty of collaboration between Ghanaian artists and artists from other countries, especially Nigeria, but there has also been plenty of bad blood.

This bad blood has not only affected the relationship between Ghana’s music industry and bigger industries like South Africa and Nigeria but also affected the relationships among the Ghanaian artists themselves. There’s plenty of potential, critics say, but division must be let go of and collaboration embraced.

Highlife is the biggest genre in Ghana, so big that it spread across borders as far as Nigeria. It is even said that Afrobeats was born from highlife. This is perhaps the biggest achievement of the Ghanaian music industry. Hiplife is a newer genre that’s been growing in popularity. Of course, let’s not forget to mention Afrobeats.

Sarkodie, Kwame Eugene, Kwesi Arthur, Shatta Wale, and many other talented artists are leading the Ghanaian charge.

Tanzania

One advantage Nigerian artists enjoy is the local consumption of their music. With over 200 million people in Nigeria, that’s enough to build an entire career already. In Tanzania, a similar trend is beginning to develop. They may not have Nigeria’s population, but if Tanzanian artists can hack the market on the home front, breaking into the international market will be easier.

The growth of the music industry in Tanzania is impressive, but the next step is necessary. The Nigerians have enjoyed the full benefit of their large population. The Tanzanians must find a way to get a similar result without that advantage.

Final Thoughts

There are two major lessons you must learn from the stories of the African music industries if you want to succeed as an artist.

1. Collaboration will only do you favors. You can’t make it big all by yourself.
2. Conquer your home crowd, then push out beyond borders.

There are other lessons hidden in the article, but these are my top two.