Kizz Daniel, Mercy Chinwo are MDUNDO’s most downloaded artistes

Mdundo has identified Nigerian music sensations Kizz Daniel and Mercy Chinwo as the artistes with the most downloads on its platform.

Kizz Daniel was named the highest-downloaded male artiste, while Mercy Chinwo received the award for the highest-downloaded female artiste.

The platform revealed this at an exclusive event at The House, Lagos, titled “Commercialisation of African Music for Global Audiences” over the weekend.

Mdundo is an African-based music service provider targeting the general market. Its services enable users to legally download music to their mobile phones and access curated DJ mixes paid for through airtime.

The event organised to promote the leverage of African music attracted a diverse audience comprising music producers, up-and-coming artistes, and music enthusiasts.

Stakeholders from the music and telecommunications industries were also present for insightful discussions, networking and celebration.

Awards recognising outstanding achievements in the African music scene were presented at the ceremony.

Other awardees included ‘Highest Growing Artiste’ Boy Sean, ‘Highest Downloaded Hyperlocal Artiste’ Nura M Inuwa and ‘Best Alternative Creative Content’ Bola Lawal.

Highlights

The event’s highlight was a distinguished panel session moderated by Joey Akan, a music journalist and founder of Afrobeats Intelligence.

The industry expert panelists included Praiz, an award-winning Nigerian R&B artiste and member of the Grammy Recording Academy; Akachi Igboko, A&R and Publishing Associate at Mavin Records; and Honour Agbedo, Project Manager at ONErpm.

Also on the panel list were Lucklyn Audu, an entertainment lawyer and business manager for Wande Coal; Excel Joab, Senior Manager of A&R and Artist Development at AWAL; and Princess Okereugo, A&R Manager at Sony Music.

This expert session addressed ‘The Commercialisation of African Music Genres and Opportunities for Brands and Artists,’ . The speakers offered valuable insights into the industry’s evolving landscape and prospects.

Together, they explored the challenges of commercialising Afrobeats and other African music genres and the side benefits for brands and artistes.

Attendees gained a deeper understanding of current industry trends and potential future directions.

The exclusive gathering mostly served as a platform to encourage collaboration and knowledge sharing among stakeholders from the music and telecommunications sectors.

Amanda Uzoagba, Head of Licensing for West Africa, emphasised the global interest in African music genres.

“With the global development of Afrobeats, we have seen a growing interest in genres originating from Africa.

“This presents exciting opportunities for all stakeholders in the industry, and Mdundo, as a leading music service provider, is actively engaged in these discussions,” she said.

Strategic partnerships

Sowari Akosionu, Head of Marketing and Partnerships for Africa, highlighted the success of Mdundo’s partnerships with telecommunications companies:

“Our achievements with Telcos across Africa demonstrate our unwavering commitment to delivering value for our partners. We are more than just a music service provider; we are a trusted value provider for partners across the continent,” Ms Akwosionu said.

She also stressed the event’s significance in facilitating knowledge-sharing and relationship-building between the music and telecommunications industries.

Ms Akwosionu also noted that with 35 million monthly active users on the continent, Mdundo is poised to engage the African music consumer and is enthusiastic about the industry’s future.

Ms Uzoagba, in her remarks, also discussed Mdundo’s dedication to artiste’s compensation.

She said, “Earlier this year, we were delighted to distribute over $1.5 million in royalties to artistes and content partners,” adding that the payout underscores the platform’s commitment to supporting and valuing the artistes “who contribute to the African music industry’s success”.

Mdundo

Mdundo is a music service dedicated to providing Africa with convenient and cost-effective access to music.

They contribute to the 135 million monthly downloads of African music.

READ ALSO:MUSIC REVIEW: ‘The Year I Turned 21’ is Ayra Starr’s bold leap into musical maturity

The platform provides simple and legal access to a wide variety of music worldwide.

By partnering with many musicians and record labels across Africa and beyond, they offer a vast collection of great music for downloading and streaming.

More Pictures: