In the rapidly evolving global landscape, Africa’s creative industry stands as a beacon of immense potential and resilience. The burgeoning talent in fields such as film, music, the arts, and design represents a limitless horizon of opportunities for African creatives1. Audu Maikori, the founder of Chocolate City Group and Pixel Ray Studios, emphasized in a recent discussion with the popular live podcast: #ThePitchRoomAfrica, the importance of relentless dedication to one’s craft, the creation of unique sounds, and openness to collaboration and feedback.
Indeed, Africa’s creative economy is gaining international attention. Global entertainment powerhouses, such as Netflix and Spotify, are investing significantly to tap into the continent’s unique and vibrant content2.
This growing recognition is fuelled by the shift towards digitization, which has made African creative content readily accessible to global audiences, creative content, resulting in increased exportation of African content and subsequently increased revenue. This growth is expected to shoot rapidly with the shift towards digitization.
However, numerous challenges still impede the full potential of the industry. A significant barrier is the structure of creative businesses. Poor business models and brand marketing often undermine growth opportunities for creatives. For instance, Artrepreneur shared that poor business models and brand marketing cost creatives opportunities to grow a successful company. It is highly unusual to see a billionaire in the arts field in Africa. And this has a lot to do with the fact that talented artists accept exposure as a means of payment for their talents. They lack the knowledge and skills to negotiate for their labour.
Recent academic research has highlighted the crucial roles of higher education and policy in supporting the development of creative economies in Africa. Universities and specialized education institutions are instrumental in fostering and developing the creative aspirations of students and future creative workers. Simultaneously, policies that encourage creative economic development and recognize the unique context of Africa are vital78.
Africa’s creative industry is at a critical juncture. By embracing these challenges and leveraging opportunities, it can contribute significantly to Africa’s economic growth and cultural footprint on the global stage. Audu Maikori suggested the relentless pursuit of creativity, openness to collaboration, and willingness to share one’s work will be keys to individual success.
Audu also specifically advised artists to go beyond just being talented but to ensure that they hone their skills to be exceptional and leverage the internet to learn the business of the creative industry itself. According to him, this will put artists in a place of influence and ensure they are not being cheated out of “what is supposed to be good deals”.
Listen to the full episode here.