This week music streaming platform Spotify announced its expansion into more than 80 new markets around the world including Rwanda. The announcement has been welcomed by Rwandan artistes and other players in the music industry, but some have warned that, if nothing is done, Rwanda will just be another country on the list. As of December 2020, Spotify had 345 million monthly active users, including 155 million paying subscribers, but that number is expected to grow with the addition of 85 new countries, making it available in 171 countries worldwide. The platform generated about $7.8 billion in 2020 and is expected to reach over 1 billion people thanks to the new countries that have been added to the list. Optimists say the Swedish audio streaming and media services provider, which was launched in October 2008, will be of great benefit to Rwandan musicians by supplementing their other sources of income. The beauty of Spotify is that when you stream a song, the artiste is directly paid. For Rwandan artistes to take a big leap and start making money from Spotify, there is much more they need to do than just upload their music on the platform. With more than 3 million artistes on the platform and more expected to join, with more countries getting on board, there are high chances that if Rwandan artistes don’t bring something to the platform, they will just be part of the statistics. For an artiste to be streamed worldwide, they must have something unique they are bringing to the platform, it must be appealing and the quality must be top notch – those are the key factors that artistes who make it big on the streaming platform possess. It is worth nothing that language in this case is not a factor as Spotify has proved. As long as you have good music which is well publicised, people will stream it. Therefore, to start with, Rwandan artistes need to be a little aggressive and submit their music to playlist curators for review. For one to get a review, you must be really outstanding. Music curators on Spotify are very vital in helping the music streamed. Better still, local music enthusiasts should work hard to get among the curators, which would be a good opportunity. Artistes also need to build their profiles and create their own playlists on the platform. The more aggressive they will get, the higher chances of being visible. It is advisable that artistes create an image or brand that makes them stand out, with good graphics, pictures and creative text. An artiste’s image or brand on Spotify is critical as it can lead to their music being curated. Importantly, local artistes need to be more creative. It is also vital for musicians to have their work reviewed by music bloggers or in the media to give it more visibility. The more visibility, the more chances of getting streamed. Artistes are also encouraged to work with labels as they have more leverage on Spotify than individuals. They can also pick interest in the work of other artistes and support them and also make sure that they have their business contacts (emails) on the platform. It is also important to share their links on other social media platforms to create a bigger reach and benefit from the huge revenues of Spotify. While Rwandan artistes might not immediately join the likes of Ed Sheeran, Drake or Wizkid in the top tier of earners, Spotify presents a chance for them to generate revenues directly from their music, especially now that they can’t hold concerts due to Covid-19.
