By Isime Esene (Nigeria)
Quality Control Lead, RED
The African continent has achieved a global outlook on many frontiers, scaling various industries into powerhouses that continue to impact the world.
Afrobeats, for instance, has captivated the hearts of many with its mesmerising hooks and melodious rhythms that have proven to retain enormous replay value over the years. We have witnessed various African artists take over the global stage, drop “song-of-the-year” hits and bring international acts into an appreciation of our race through noteworthy collaborations and nominations.
Nonetheless, international collaborations are the least of the many successes achieved by Africans in recent years. Major international record labels have successfully infiltrated this area of the continent’s entertainment industry, snapping up the best talents that Africa has got to offer. Universal Music Group, Sony Music Entertainment and Warner Music Group have their eyes fixed on the number of growing music talents in the country. Artistes such as Wizkid, Davido, Burna Boy, Tiwa Savage, Sauti Sol, Diamond Platnumz and a host of other prominent entertainers have all been included on the rosters of these — and many more — record labels.
Additionally, the success of Afrobeats has seen artists like Wizkid take over the US Billboard Hot 100 with hits such as ‘Essence,’ becoming the song of last year’s summer, while Burna Boy’s ‘Last Last’ claimed the second spot on the US Afrobeats Songs Chart, quickly becoming a favourite across the world.
But Africa’s unique sounds are not the only treasures it holds on the continent.
Other socio-economic sectors of the continent have also experienced exponential growth, rapidly growing at an almost parallel speed to the music industry. The movie industry has grown beyond the borders of the continent and has been able to stake its claims on the international scene. Particularly, the Nigerian movie industry — or Nollywood as it is fondly called — has transformed so radically that it has become commonplace to break box office records across digital streaming platforms, and even bag international nominations. Genevieve Nnaji’s ‘LionHeart’ for instance, became the first Nigerian movie to be nominated for an Oscar award. This piece broke seemingly unreachable heights with this nomination, spurring a flurry of talents in shaping the narratives about African stories. EbonyLife Studios, owned by media entrepreneur and Forbes’ ‘Africa’s Most Successful Woman’ — Mosunmola ‘Mo’ Abudu produced international box-office hits such as ‘The Wedding Party,’ ‘Blood Sisters,’ ‘Chief Daddy,’ and more.
Beyond film, Africa’s intellectual and human resources are tremendous. Both at home and abroad, Africans have shown exemplary professional competence, contributing to the socioeconomic growth of their host countries and increasing their GDP. The abundance of talent explains why international companies prefer to recruit remote workers from Africa and various educational institutions continue to make their presence known within the continent, offering these talents the opportunity to upskill and increase their capacity.
While Africa has a myriad of resources and expressions, many of its giant strides would have gone unnoticed and constrained solely to Africa without the efficiency of media marketing agencies telling the African story how it should be told: a narrative showcasing stories of talent, discipline, resilience, and impact made by Africans locally and in the diaspora.
Without storytellers, important narratives are buried in piles of historical debris. Thankfully, there are more and more of these agencies committed to showcasing African talent and exporting African content from across various sectors.
Within the Education sector, boutique PR & Marketing agencies such as Vive Africa are leveraging their wealth of experience and networks in Africa’s frontier markets to bridge the gap between foreign academic partners/institutions and African students through effective communication and storytelling, providing academic and career opportunities for African students and professionals. Many other agencies such as these are putting in the work and making a difference in telling the true, authentic stories of the everyday African.
Indeed, Afrobeats is arguably the continent’s biggest export, but it is not a standalone feature that encompasses the essence of the continent. As Africans, music is a huge part of our culture and national export, and while that is extremely commendable, we excel in other diverse sectors which have the potential to further correct the “single stories/narratives” about Africa across the globe and elevate the continent’s status on the global scene.