Spotify Reports $11 Billion Annual Payout to Music Industry in 2025
Spotify announced today that it paid out more than $11 billion to the music industry in 2025, a figure it states represents the largest annual payment to music creators from any single retailer in...
Spotify Launches ‘Directed By,’ a New Documentary Series on Music Video Production
Spotify has launched Directed By, a new documentary-style series that provides viewers an inside look at the making of a music video. The launch was announced today as part of the streaming service's ongoing...
Boomplay’s 2025 Recap Highlights Regional Breakouts and Catalog Growth
Digital music service Boomplay has released its year-end recap for 2025, highlighting the platform’s tenth anniversary and growth across key African markets. The report emphasizes a strategy focused on regional discovery, catalog expansion, and...
Highvibes Signs Global Distribution and Licensing Deal With Beatport
Highvibes Distribution, a major Africa-based music distribution company, has entered into a global distribution and licensing partnership with Beatport, the leading global platform for electronic music.
Through the direct integration, Highvibes will be able to...
Universal Music Group’s °1824 Launches Dedicated Livestreaming Channel ‘Universal Music Live’ on Twitch
°1824, the in-house creative division of Universal Music Group (UMG), has announced the launch of Universal Music Live, a new dedicated livestreaming channel on the Amazon-owned platform Twitch.
The initiative is designed to broadcast and...
Wizkid Surpasses 10 Billion Spotify Streams, First African Artist to Reach Milestone
Nigerian artist Wizkid has become the first African artist to surpass 10 billion streams on Spotify, according to data from the platform current as of January 2026, reports Chart Data.
The milestone underscores the surging global influence of...
Audiomack Hits 50 Million Monthly Active Users, Reports 31% YoY Growth
Music streaming platform Audiomack has reached a significant milestone, amassing 50 million monthly active users (MAU) globally. The company announced the figure on (January 21), citing a 31% year-over-year growth rate for 2025 and attributing its expansion to a strategic...
Merlin Partners with Udio to Forge AI Licensing Path for Independent Music
Independent digital licensing agency Merlin has announced a partnership with AI music generation platform Udio, establishing a licensing framework for its member labels' catalogues. The agreement will allow Udio to train new AI models...
Why Africa’s Music Renaissance Needs Platforms Built By Us, For Us
Tayebwa David offers a practitioner's perspective on the evolution of Africa's digital music landscape. Serving as both Chief Music Business Officer at Opus Music Africa and Director of Content at the streaming service Josplay, his insights are grounded in the operational reality of building local platforms.
Mavin Records And Sacem Launch Cross-Border Songwriting Initiative AFROCROISER
Mavin Records, the French Embassy in Nigeria, and French authors’ society Sacem have jointly announced the launch of AFROCROISER, a Franco-Nigerian songwriting camp. The initiative is designed to foster collaboration between composers from the...
Sho Madjozi faces R5 Million lawsuit from ex-management
South African musician Sho Madjozi is facing a high-stakes legal battle, with her former management agency Black Major filing a lawsuit claiming it is owed more than R5 million in unpaid commissions and expenses.
According to court documents filed in the Johannesburg...
Merlin Appoints M.A.D Solutions Bugwu Aneto-Okeke to Global Board
Bugwu Aneto-Okeke, Founder and CEO of the Lagos- and Houston-based digital distribution firm Measurable Accurate Digital Solutions (M.A.D Solutions), has been elected to the Merlin Board, the global digital licensing agency announced today.
Aneto-Okeke joins...
Audiomack Charts Point to a Structural Shift Toward Local Music Consumption Across Africa
Audiomack, the Africa-focused streaming platform, has claimed the top music app ranking in 17 countries across the continent, per the company announcement.
The platform, which announced the milestone through a company press release shared with...
Legal Battle Between X and Music Publishers Monitored for Potential Effects on African Digital Markets
A major antitrust lawsuit filed by X Corp. against a consortium of global music publishers is being monitored for its potential ripple...
Sony Music Publishing West Africa’s Godwin Tom on Why Publishing Is the Industry’s Pension
Godwin Tom, the Managing Director of Sony Music Publishing (SMP) West Africa, has issued a clarion call to recognize songwriters as the indispensable architects of the global music business, encapsulating his core thesis in a stark equation: “No Song = No Star.”
Josplay Aims to Fix Africa’s $1B Music Metadata Crisis With AI-Powered Digital DNA Backbone
As Afrobeats and Amapiano dominate global charts, a foundational crisis is eroding millions in potential revenue and cultural visibility for African creators: profound Music Metadata Deficiency.
Streaming platform Josplay has detailed an ambitious, multi-tiered...
Benjamin Otwal Appointed Manager at Kings Music Records
Music industry executive Benjamin Otwal has been appointed as the new Manager at Kings Music Records to oversee the career of Tanzanian artist Ali Kiba, Afrikona has learned.
Otwal joins the record label and artist management firm following...
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