Nigeria’s Art and Culture Minister on Using Afrobeats and Amapiano for Economic Growth

One takeaway from the 2024 Grammys is that Afrobeats is now a global product. A recording year that saw the awards introduce a special category for African music, thus, producing its highest number of nominations from the continent, is a testament to the huge waves that the genre is making beyond continental shores. Furthermore, Burna Boy’s debut performance on stage echoed not just the genre’s popularity, but also a shapeshifting dynamism.

In attendance at the ceremony was Nigeria’s Minister of Art, Culture and Creative Economy, Hannatu Musawa. The minister, who was there to support both Nigerian and African artists, approved of the new African music category by the Grammys.

“I think it's very important because it is about representation and it is about expression… of what our music looks like,” she told OkayAfrica on the red carpet. “Finally, the world is waking up to the importance of the expression of African music through Afrobeats and amapiano, and we are really, really looking forward to continue to support them to open up this space for the people in it,” she added.

According to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the creative economy is one of the world’s fastest growing sectors, creating job opportunities and livelihoods for millions of people globally. But Africa is yet to maximize its potential, accounting for a low share of the global creative economy.

It’s only now that the continent is witnessing encouraging spurts of creative innovation across its cultural industries that are gaining global recognition. From art and music, to fashion and film, Africa is presenting an immense growth potential, driven by its youth population.

Even foreign corporations are keenly aware of the continent’s untapped creative market. Entertainment behemoths like Netflix and Warner Music Group have made efforts to deepen their footprint in the region, seeking collaborations and partnerships with local talents and industries.

Nigeria is an interesting case study, as its creative industries (music included) have been thriving with little or no assistance from its government. Most of the accolades and recognition that Afrobeats has received (music chart success, international collaborations, awards, etc) have come from the sole efforts of homegrown talents and executives.

Musawa said that Nigeria is trying to diversify its economy from oil production and is exploring the creative sector where it sees an opportunity with its over 200 million population.

“We are trying to explore other ways to expand the GDP, have economic expansion as well as having a cultural expansion. So we are looking at this area, this sector of the creative economy in order to be able to do that.” Musawa said.

Musawa’s attendance at the 66th Grammy ceremony does spell a new shift in attitude from the government, one that can harness a cultural product like Afrobeats as a new tool for economic empowerment and development. Aside from supporting African music acts, Musawa sees Afrobeats and Amapiano as a vehicle to unite the continent.

Both genres, in fact, have enjoyed cross-pollination and experimentation to mass appeal. Tyla’s Grammy-winning hit song “Water,” for example, is an exquisite blend of Afrobeats and amapiano, combined with her pop sensibilities, threading a sonic heritage between Nigeria and South Africa.

“What I hope to do in my position is to use this sector to see how we can unite ourselves on an African platform just to have this unity and this synergy and this understanding. And I think we can do that squarely, primarily from the creative industry.” Musawa said.