Watch the Trailer for Upcoming Documentary 'Afrobeats: The Backstory'

'Afrobeats: The Backstory' is a documentary premiering next month which chronicles the birth and rise of Africa's biggest genre and its superstars.

Burna Boy - OkayAfrica

NDIO, CA - APRIL 21: Burna Boy performs at Coachella Stage during the 2019 Coachella Valley Music And Arts Festival on April 21, 2019 in Indio, California.

Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images for Coachella.

Afrobeats: The Backstory is an upcoming documentary set to premiere on April 2nd of this year at the Filmhouse Cinema in Lagos, Nigeria. The documentary, which is produced by Nigerian filmmaker, Ayo Shonaiya, is powered by the streaming platform Boomplay which has been behind the annual Felabration festival and other notable music events. The production is set to tell the origins story, so to speak, of Afrobeats—it's birth, its exponential rise and how it came to be one of Africa's biggest international exports.


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Featuring substantial commentary from the custodians of Afrobeats, music producers, and artists, Afrobeats: The Backstory promises to chronicle, and accurately so, the remarkable story behind one of the most beloved genres on the continent. It has the opportunity to really lay out the story of the music, its pioneers, its young talent and what is next for it in the coming years. If it manages to do this, it could be the documentary of the decade.

The Afrobeats: The Backstory documentarycouldn't have come at a more apt time for the Afrobeats genre. Just recently, Burna Boywon his first ever "Best Global Music Album" Grammy for Twice As Tall in addition to Wizkid who was also awarded a "Best Music Video" Grammy for his feature on Beyoncé's "Brown Skin Girl" anthem. Moreover, the legendary Afrobeat (without the 's') pioneer Fela Kuti, whose music heavily inspired Afrobeats as we know it today, was nominated for the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame—the first ever African nominee.

Watch the trailer for the upcoming documentary below:

Afrobeats The Backstory | Official Trailerwww.youtube.com

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