Nigerian artists earned N58bn in royalties on Spotify in 2024, 232% more than 2023

Nigerian artists on Spotify earned a total of N58 billion streaming on the platform in 2024. This sum is more than double the figure from 2023 and five times greater than the total sum earned in 2022. This was disclosed in the company’s annual Loud & Clear report which focuses on the Nigerian market.

The report also reveals that the number of Nigerian artists generating ₦10 million in royalties from Spotify has more than doubled since 2023 and more than tripled compared to 2022 figures, underscoring the explosive commercial growth of Nigerian music globally.

It also indicates that local consumption of Nigerian content has grown 206% year-over-year, with a remarkable 782% increase over the past three years.

Spotify launched its annual report, Loud & Clear, to increase transparency in the music industry by sharing data on Spotify’s royalty payments and breaking down the global streaming economy, the players and the process.

Commenting on the report, Jocelyne Muhutu-Remy, Spotify’s Sub-Saharan Africa Managing Director indicated that the music streaming company is committed to empowering Nigerian artists to earn from their art whilst maintaining transparency with artists and stakeholders. “The incredible growth of Nigerian music, both locally and globally, is a testament to the talent and creativity within Nigeria, and we are proud to support its continued rise”, she added.

In the report, Spotify claims that Nigerian artists have seen a 49% export growth over the past three years. it indicated that Nigerian artists were discovered by first-time listeners over 1 billion times on Spotify in 2024. More than 1,900 Nigerian artists were added to Spotify editorial playlists—33% more than in 2023.

This significant growth reflects the dynamic creativity emerging from Nigeria’s music scene and signals Spotify’s ongoing commitment to supporting artistic talent across the region.

Despite a growing local listenership, global listeners on average spend over 1.1 million hours streaming Nigerian artists. In addition, users have created approximately 250 million playlists featuring Nigerian artists worldwide.

Indeed, a significant portion of the ₦58 billion in royalties earned by Nigerian artists came from listeners outside Nigeria.

Spotify payment to Nigerian artists: over 100% growth from 2023

In 2023, Nigerian artists earned a total of N25 billion on Spotify. Just like 2024, the amount paid in 2023 more than doubled the N11 billion it paid to Nigerian artists on the platform in 2022.

Read more: Nigerian artists earned N25bn on Spotify in 2023, more than double the previous year

In the same year, paid a total of $9 billion to artists globally. That figure has nearly tripled over the past six years and represents a big part of the $48B+ Spotify has paid since its founding. The sum also sets the record for the highest annual payment to the music industry from any single retailer.

It also added that the number of Nigerian artists earning over N10 million in royalties has quadrupled since 2018. The report also revealed that global listeners on the platform discovered Nigerian artists nearly 950 million times in 2023.

The Loud and Clear Report released by Spotify disclosed that Afrobeats remains the most listened-to genre in Nigeria, however, the country’s music scene is experiencing a genre revolution as the company’s data shows that local genres are enjoying increased popularity.

Overall, the top 5 exported music genres from Nigeria are Afrobeats, Nigerian Pop, Afropop, Nigerian Hip Hop and Afro R&B. Homegrown genres like Highlife, Igbo Pop and Fuji witnessed significantly increased listenership with Highlife growing by 224 per cent, Igbo Pop increasing by 303 per cent and the Fuji genre growing by 187 per cent.

Yet, streaming companies contribute to democratizing music distribution with over half of the N25 billion royalties paid to Nigerian artists going to independent artists or labels.