Africa DJ mixes see 500% growth on Apple Music

African DJ mixes experienced a 500 percent growth in Apple music over the past year from August 2021 to August 2022 according to a report from the American music production company Billboard.

Based on the report, the biggest bump on the continent was seen in Nigeria, where the growth of DJ mixes during 2022 has risen 3,000 percent year over year, making it one of the world’s top 10 countries for DJ mixes.

Meanwhile, in South Africa, streams have grown 150 percent year over year, maintaining the country’s position as a top 10 market for DJ Mixes. Countries including Kenya, Uganda, and Ghana are also key drivers of this growth.

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According to Apple Music, this growth has been driven by the explosion of African electronic genres including Afrobeat, Amapiano and Gqom, as produced by genre leaders including Wizkid, Tems, Burna Boy, CKay, Fireboy DML, Major League DJz, Kabza de Small, DJ Maphorisa, DBN Gogo and more.

The platform also hosts mixes from a plethora of African dance music brands and curators including Soul Candi, Obrigado, Kunye and the Balcony Mix Africa.

The program uses Shazam-style technology and an internal clearing team to identify the tracks DJs are using in DJ mixes, which have historically been challenging in terms of royalties, and then pays the rights holders directly for those usages.