The African music industry was always something rarely spoken of. However, a few years ago, artists such as Wizkid, Davido and Tinashe saw their names rocket to international fame. One of the major factors in this success story has been extensive growth of smartphone penetration across Africa recently. According to IFPI’s Digital Music Report 2014, mobile broadband penetration in Sub-Saharan Africa went from 2% in 2010 to 11% in 2013, while digital revenue grew by an impressive 107% in South Africa. A quantum increase for a mere gap of three years. The soaring rise has not gone unnoticed by major international music corporations, who have moved quickly to claim African music consumers on the continent and beyond by signing up the extensive talent pool of musicians. In 2014, Sony Music Entertainment made a significant investment into Nigerian musician D’banj, and the Ugandan style icon Keko. But despite this attention and investment on African artists by major record labels, Colin Gayle, Chairman of Billboard Africa tellsDjembe Communications in an interview: “These things are happening, but the problem we have is that American and global companies are looking at African artists but they do not understand the music. They do not understand the trends…[in] how to build a global market from the street up.”
Consumers in Africa use phones not just for talking, but also for downloading and listening to music. Mobile phones are also the gateway to financial services, social networking and video games to most users in Africa. By the end of 2012, Africa had 750 million mobile phone subscribers, and it will have 1 billion by the end of 2015, according to Informa Telecoms and Media, a UK-based telecoms and media consultancy. Additionally, international services such as Deezer, iTunes, Simfy and YouTube are now also operating across the continent. While they are still small compared to the big telephone carriers, insiders at Untold Africa estimate iTunes now accounts for 40% to 50% of digital revenues in South Africa. Other established local services include Spinlet and iRoking in Nigeria and Mdundo in Kenya. Yoel Kenan, Founder and CEO of the digital music company Africori, tells Djembe: “The catalysts to create this musical ecosystem are: 1. Smartphone penetration and 2. The cost of data to come down. If you don’t have that environmental setup, then there is no way people will pay. We [Africori] believe Africa will be interested in ‘bundles’ or data packages where people have access to free music. You will buy either your daily or weekly package and receive access to your local music choices.”
However, despite the amazing contributions that smartphones and local digital music platforms make to the music industry in Africa, the legal environment on copyright law still seems to be blocking the path for many African musicians. Currently the music market internationally continues to be distorted by unfair competition from unlicensed services. According to Good Governance Africa, consumers agree that intermediary search engines should give priority to licensed digital music services over pirate services in their search results since currently there are more people who download pirated copies (57%) than those who acquire their music legally (55%). Africori’s Kenan, however, adds a note of sobriety: “It’s easier today to check the airplay – to check the radio stations. With transparency you bring more confidence in the marketplace. What is important is, first, trust and, secondly, will you be paying for usage? Any analytics dashboard can monitor mobility usage [in providing music publishers with greater transparency into royalties owed to their artists]“. Billboard Africa’s Colin Gayle notes: “I think piracy will take care of itself over time. Piracy existed because there was no official distribution channel in Africa. If you went to Nigeria 5 or 10 years ago, you couldn’t walk into a store and buy a Beyoncé album. So piracy sometimes is based on necessity.”
By comparison, North America’s revenue in 2016 will be $824 million, which is up only slightly from $708 million in 2012. This goes to show that Africa’s music industry is benefiting substantially from the proliferation of smartphones and internet connectivity across the continent. Gayle echoes this upward trend: “Due to smartphones being more readily available as well as the cost of data having dropped. Smartphones have become the enabler of communication in Africa, and therefore people can access information and upload information online. This way, Africa will be able to have a two-way conversation with the world, and that’s the beauty of having a smartphone and more digital devices that allow the consumer to engage.”