Spotify’s Sub-Saharan Africa Head of Music, Phiona Okumu, says they are committed to giving Ghanaian artistes the needed worldwide exposure, and also aid them to connect more with the new audiences around the world.
She said programmes like RADAR and EQUAL were targeted at giving Ghanaian artistes and musicians from other African countries the exposure to sell their culture.
Recently, rising Ghanaian music sensation, Black Sherif, was among six African megastars who joined Spotify’s RADAR programme, while Gyakie and Amaarae have also been named in Spotify’s EQUAL campaign.
Speaking in an interview with GNA Entertainment, Okumu said her outfit was poised to introduce more programmes like EQUAL to make sure that there is more gender balance in the industry.
“If you look at the charts, you would find out that there is not a lot of representation of female artistes, so this is what we are looking to change with EQUAL, and so far we have done one with Gyakie and Amaarae,” she said.
She said there were more plans to get more new Ghanaian artistes on their RADAR platform, which seeks to give artistes more highlights and visibility.
Speaking on whether Spotify had plans for some big acts in Ghana, Okumu said their relationship with Stonebwoy, Sarkodie, among others, had been great so far, having worked on lots of their projects.
“The commitment of Spotify to African music is very obvious. The fact that we are able to support someone like Black Sherif, having him on billboards in Nigeria and in South Africa,” Okumu added.
She also said that Spotify has a lot to contribute to Ghanaian music in the coming years which would help sell Ghanaian artistes all over the world.
GNA