How Live Sound Issues Are Affecting African Musicians

African music has been on the rise. As stars from the continent grace the biggest stages, stretching the music’s influence internationally, it’s quite important that musicians deliver memorable performances on-stage. Such performances can bring their records into life, and in this, they’re aided by human and technical set-ups such as stage assistants, stage design, lighting, and other such relevant materials.

The most important element of a good stage performance is the sound, however. Since experiencing a well-developed setlist — alongside a cohesive visual presentation — is the ultimate goal of a concert-goer, sound engineering is (obviously) an invaluable element of a successful show.

In early April, Nigerian artist Rema made news for walking out on the stage of J. Cole’s Dreamville Festival in the United States. In a clip which surfaced online, the young singer could be seen complaining over the background sound of his global hit, “Calm Down.” “Sound issues are messing up my whole performance, I'm seriously not feeling this shit at all,” a frustrated Rema was filmed saying onstage, “I’m representing Africa. This is too messed up.”

That situation opened up a bigger conversation as to the importance of concert sound and the nuances of its application. While the musical expectations of a performance are rightfully placed on the artist, the technical duties open up more widely. The competence of a much greater number of people is required, and an artist’s time on stage depends on the handling of this task. “Sometimes, because of logistical problems, some artists find themselves just randomly thrown on stage without having participated in sound checks, which involve tuning the mic [and instruments’] sounds to the artists preference” says music executive and creative director Gbemi Ereku.

A source at Rema's label, Mavin Records, tells OkayAfrica that while they usually have their event personnel on-the-ground during performances, sometimes for big festivals like Dreamville they only advise the festival sound engineers and do not directly work on the sound. Our source adds that lack of communication was the problem. The source tells OkayAfrica that an artist can decide to delay a performance or “power through” it if their team is in charge of the sound, but it’s a tricky situation when that is not the case.

For years the African music audience has decried the lack of professionalism with concerts. The level of organization has been quite low, and this, Ereku says, could also be as a result of poor sound engineering. “Our peculiar infrastructural problems in Nigeria is one of the reasons most artists in Nigeria come on stage at their concerts very late,” he says.

International performances garner even more attention, which is the reason why sound and overall concert organization should be prioritized as a tool to reach effective multicultural presentation. Ereku adds that even after a proper soundcheck, things can still go wrong. “And so after everything is set-up about six hours before the performance, the artist’s team must ensure that everything is arranged according to plan minutes before the artist gets on stage. As soon as the artist gets on stage and things are not right, the embarrassment immediately falls on him and can tell on his brand,” he says.

The Kenyan music publicist Camille Storm agrees on the depth of brand impact. “From what I’ve seen working with artists,” she says, “it’s such a bummer when they’ve put together an amazing set, only to have sound issues ruin everything — and not just for them, but for their fans too who’ve sometimes paid a lot for tickets or traveled a distance to see the performance.”

She affirms that “for artists like (Rema), these performances are a big deal. It’s a chance to share their culture and music with the world and to continue building their brands on a global level. Nobody wants their fans to leave disappointed. I think it’s crucial for organizers, especially at major festivals, to ensure there are no technical hiccups and that the acoustics of the venue have been taken into consideration for an overall better sound experience for the artist and the audience.”

In this phase of the ‘Afrobeats to the World’ movement, more African artists have been sharpening their grasp on live performance. By honing into a fuller presentation by having band members, hiring creative directors, collaborating with production companies and the likes, the continent has reinforced its status in the global music scene.

An iconic performance in recent years was Burna Boy’s Grammys’ 2021 performance: a medley of “Level Up” and “Onyeka” shortly before the Nigerian superstar was announced as the winner of the Best Global Album for Twice As Tall, it was shot in Lagos and centered the view of National Theatre, paired with live-supplied choir vocals and the Yoruba bata drum. Earlier this year, he was again called up by the Academy, giving a thrilling rendition of “On Form,” “City Boys,” and “Sitting On Top of the World,” all from his latest project, I Told Them.

We can also recall Angelique Kidjo’s memorable performance at the Royal Albert Hall, which came during the post-release run for the Grammy-winning Celia album, a dazzling celebration of salsa legend, Celia Cruz. With the music propelled by the mood, which was realized through intimate spacing and many bright, colored lights, The Telegraph confirmed “a dazzling precision to Kidjo’s vocals.”

From Youssou N’dour to Miriam Makeba, Salif Keita, Ali Farka Toure, and King Sunny Ade, all the greats of pre-contemporary African music had one thing in common: they knew how to work a stage. In 2009, at the age of seventy, the legendary South African instrumentalist Hugh Masekela, performed for over 85 minutes at the Estival Jazz Lugano in southern Switzerland. Alternating between instruments, mostly his beloved trumpet and percussion, he wove poetry and spoken word into jazz, performing with earthy diligence some of the most acclaimed numbers from his catalog, including “Stimela (The Coal Train Song)” and “Lady,” his tribute cover of the classic Fela record.

It's stating the obvious to say that international performances often tend to have far-reaching consequences. Considering the trajectory of modern African music and trying to reach those levels of acclaim we reached in the 1970s and preceding decades, being part of events such as Coachella and Dreamville Festival “indicates global acceptance into very significant markets,” says Ereku. With a lot of disposable income and a culture of buying and streaming music, these markets include North America, Europe and Asia. Consequently, these performances might have a direct effect on artists’ streaming numbers and entrench them deeper into the global music community. Ereku also affirms that “it can shoot up their profile amongst international music executives, opening even more doors for financial benefits via touring, record deals, publishing, endorsements and the likes.”

In essence, he says, “it cements their status as a global star.”