By Jeoffrey Mukubi
One of the biggest international audio streaming sites, Spotify will finally hit our shores soon. This is according to a statement sent out from Spotify.
The online streaming service will be launching its service in 85 new markets, and will also roll out 36 new languages on the platform. The news was announced at its online event, “Stream On”.
The expansion includes markets across Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean. Combined, these markets include more than a billion people.
Although mainstay Namibian musicians are on Spotify, the change will help them localize and monetize their streams from here and not South Africa or Nigeria like it is currently done.
DonluAfrica Founder Llewelyn Adams told unWrap.Online Namibian musicians can now get their music onto another platform which will see them earning from it.
“Spotify pays out its royalties on a pro-rata basis, meaning that, at the end of each accounting period, all of its royalty money gets virtually dumped into one pot, from which artists are paid according to their share of all streams on the platform.
So if a group of artists is getting 90% of the streams, they’re also getting 90% of the money,’ said Adams.
The company adds that it will continuously work with local rights holders and partners to expand its catalog to include more local offerings globally.
“The existing rich music cultures in each of these markets will now be able to reach Spotify’s global audience. All this untapped music energy and access to our innovative creator tools will help propel artists to new heights and empower them to turn their passion into a profession,” an excerpt in the company’s statement read.
Adams also added that our artists will have to step up their game to ensure that they get more airplay on the platform.
In Africa Spotify will now include Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cabo Verde, Cameroon, Chad, Comoros, Côte d’Ivoire, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Eswatini, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
