Category: Artist Development Programs
Providing resources and information about programs that support the development and growth of emerging music artists.
Yamê: Building a New Language Between African Heritage and Global Music
There are artists who cross genres because the industry demands versatility, and there are artists whose music naturally refuses the borders placed around it. Yamê belongs to the second category. The French-Cameroonian artist has built his musical identity somewhere between rap, jazz, soul, R&B, French chanson, and African musical traditions. His voice can move from…
Custodian Gems: KAESTYLE Leads 12 Records Worth Hearing Before Consensus Arrives
With KAESTYLE on the cover, this week’s Custodian Gems moves through 6uff, Kayode, Taene, Pabrymo, OluwaMillar, Ef Moon, Abefe, Sigag Lauren, Lil Frosh, Lasmid and Hunnyboy – a selection interested less in who already commands the conversation than in where attention might be moving next. Discovery becomes less useful when everybody has already agreed on…
Martell’s Swift Academy Starts in Nairobi – But the Bigger Investment Is African Music Infrastructure
Created by Martell and curated by Africa House, Swift Academy has selected 25 emerging creatives and music professionals for its inaugural Nairobi cohort. Behind the mentorship, grants and industry access sits a larger question: what can global brands contribute to African music once sponsorship moves beyond visibility and begins investing in the people and infrastructure…
Jua’s “Eshi” Finds Pan-African Connection Without Asking Africa to Sound the Same
Bringing together Maa, Swahili, Sesotho and Amharic alongside musical traditions stretching from Kenya and Ethiopia to Lesotho, Mozambique and North Africa, on Eshi, Jua’s latest CHIKKA experiment asks a more interesting question about Pan-African music: what if connection does not require sameness? Africa has spent generations being described through its differences. Different languages. Different borders….
Xenia Manasseh, Ukweli and Ywaya Tajiri Ask “AJE?” as Nairobi’s R&B Ecosystem Keeps Building Outward
The new collaboration AJE? arrives as one of the early releases emerging from Cinq Music and Nairobi-based Soul HQ’s developing relationship – bringing three distinct creative voices into a record whose significance extends beyond the song itself. There is something increasingly interesting happening around Nairobi’s contemporary music ecosystem. Not simply more releases. Not simply more…
The 18th Headies Nominations Are Here: FOLA, Asake, Davido, Ayra Starr and a New Generation Define the 2026 Race
The Headies has officially unveiled the nominations for its 18th edition, setting the stage for another expansive assessment of Nigerian music’s changing centre of gravity – and this year’s list finds established heavyweights increasingly sharing space with a generation whose ascent has unfolded at remarkable speed. Covering eligible music released and distributed on digital streaming…
Victony Is 2FRESH as STARLIFE Leads This Week’s Afrobeats Heat Different
Afrobeats Heat Different returns with Victony at the centre of a 15-track New Music Friday edition that moves through Lagos street rap, contemporary Afropop, Afro-house, alternative experimentation and Francophone Africa. There is something particularly satisfying about watching an artist reach the point where experimentation no longer feels like risk. For Victony, STARLIFE appears to be…
From Lagos to Nairobi: Cinq Music’s Soul HQ Partnership Signals a Deeper Bet on African Music Infrastructure
Cinq Music Group is expanding its footprint in African music through a new distribution and artist-services partnership with Nairobi-based Soul HQ, bringing Xenia Manasseh, AYLØ and Altair Saïd into a global infrastructure designed to connect locally developed African talent with international audiences. Barely a month after announcing a partnership with D’Banj’s C.R.E.A.M platform in Nigeria,…
Angélique Kidjo ’s Hollywood Walk of Fame Star Marks A New Milestone for African Music
Beninese music icon Angélique Kidjo has become the first Black African artist to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, adding one of the entertainment industry’s most recognisable honours to a career spanning more than four decades.The five-time Grammy winner’s Hollywood recognition marks a landmark moment for African music while reflecting more than…
Sebuleni Returns to Shelter on August 30 for a Special Edition Celebrating Community, Deep House, and the Culture of Listening
Nairobi, Kenya – August 2026 — Sebuleni, Nairobi’s independent listening house dedicated to Deep House culture and intentional community gathering, returns to Shelter KE on Sunday, 30 August 2026, for a special edition that brings together music lovers, selectors, and cultural enthusiasts for twelve hours of carefully curated sound. Rooted in Deep House as its…