Young Africans do not dream of going to the United States because they read an article in the New York Times. They love the US because they saw a Jay-z video, a Hollywood film and an NBA Game… When Rwandans on Twitter (#RwoT) and other social media platforms were set ablaze by the announcement that a dreadlocked African-American named Jermaine Cole will feature for local basketball team ‘The Patriots’, most assumed the Rwandan side had made a coup in signing a professional NBA player for their first participation in the Basketball Africa League (The BAL) As Generation-Z lost their minds, Rwandan parents were scratching their head wondering, who is this guy? Little did they know that the bearded Jermaine Cole was a multi-platinum Hip Hop artist known around the world as J-Cole. J-Cole is six albums in ten years. As a rapper and lyricist, J-Cole’s ‘street cred’ is undisputable as a representative of the purest form of Hip Hop culture: J-Cole doesn’t bling-bling, or ‘rock’ branded designer clothes. J-Cole steps out in new age Rasta hippie sporty attire 24/7. When Jay-Zs first label Roc-A-Fella disbanded and became president of ‘Def Jam’ in the late 90s, he also created the ‘Roc Nation’ music label and guess who his first solo male signing was? A fresh-faced clean-shaved young lyricist named J-Cole, his second signing was a female Barbadian beauty named Rihanna...but we digress... J Cole is also a gifted basketball player who chose a career in music over sports. But why not do both? His newly released album OFF SEASON was topping music charts in 38 countries – in his absence, because he is away, having fun in Rwanda with his mates the ‘Patriots’. Beyond the obvious benefits J-Cole star power can bring to the brands ‘The BAL and ‘Visit Rwanda’, such game-changing moves are an opportunity for African countries and the new frontier, thanks to President Kagame, of the new African soft power. Western media will not be pleased, nor will London and Washington DC-based lobby firms. It is normal, they are being disrupted and will soon become obsolete. It turns out, brand ‘Visit Rwanda’ knows how to throw a party and invite cool guests! By cool guests, I mean billionaires, global super-stars, CEOs and the occasional Emmanuel Macron… In this context, how do you expect journalists of the Guardian to feel? What do you want Human Rights Watch staff to do? It is as though their lives – dedicated at disparaging Rwanda have been a waste. As an African activist, these events are vindicating. They are possibly the best response one can reserve to the naysayers, to quote Singaporean founding father, Lee Kwan Yew: ‘Build it, they will come’. Rwanda is not at its first trial in this type of soft power coups; in fact, it is becoming the norm, rather than the exception: ‘We have a VIP booth in Emirate Stadium, the booth next to ours in JPMorgan-Chase Bank. I can’t miss a chance to go see a game from the Rwandan booth, anytime I am in London…’, a friend said. Apart from London, ‘Visit Rwanda’ is on full display in ‘Parc-des-Prince’, the sporting cathedral of the city of Paris, in France, and whenever Kylan Mbappé passes the ball to Neymar, two global football sensations playing for Paris-Saint-Germain. But it would be pointless, if we urged people of the world to ‘Visit Rwanda’, if we didn’t have the infrastructure to receive them. It seems Rwanda Convention Bureau has a strong defence at home and RDB a strong forward internationally, the Team Rwanda is coming into shape. Beyond the fun and the soft-power however, J-Cole and other celebrities’ advent in Rwanda is a pure product of a functioning creative ecosystem that understands, values and invests in intangible uncompromised creative and artistic expression: The celebrity, the awards, the fortune, the business, the marketability are all ‘by-products’ of that initial belief and mindset that have laid the foundations, systems, policies and funding for these ecosystems to be effective in Rwanda. In the classical understanding of geopolitics and of international business, these types of events were perceived as irrelevant to socio-economic development, unless one could demonstrate a tangible ‘ROI’ in monetary and short terms. But let’s think about it in monetary terms: the United Kingdom Creative Industries sector was growing more than five times faster than the national economy: £111bn in 2018. In the USA: The value of arts and cultural production in 2019 was $919.7 billion, amounting to 4.3% of gross domestic product. In France: Figures show that in 2018 the industry raked in €91bn, it shows a growth of 4.7% between 2013 and 2018. Closer to home in Nigeria, the country’s motion picture and music recording industry accounted for 1.2 trillion Naira (roughly 3.1 billion U.S. dollars) of Nigerias GDP in 2016, while in South Africa, the core creative industries contributed 3.05% to the GDP in 2017, that is R155 billion ($10.7bn), and the supporting industries had a share of 2.24% of the GDP at R115 billion, which is a total share of 5.29% of the GDP. And indeed in Rwanda, COVID notwithstanding, the impact on the tourism industry has been immediate. You could probably find the numbers at Rwanda Development Board (RDB)’s website on the impact in monetary terms, of the Arsenal and PSG sponsorship deals. But words couldn’t possibly describe the psychological impact of the brand flashing in the stadium for every European game and on television sets across the world. The business of culture is the business of designing, producing, distributing, and marketing cultural products. Even though it gives employment to millions, and is the main business of many large and small organizations. It is an area that is rarely studied from a strategic management or development perspective. In some countries, the creative economies contribute to 3.5% to 5.5% of their GDP. It is the Rwandan Policy that ‘culture shall be the bedrock of modern Rwanda development.’ The joyous outcome benefiting Rwanda today is all rooted in how Hip Hop culture and black cultural expression has taken dominance in the business global market – for many years. But for Rwanda it is also an aspect of self-worth and Pan-Africanism. When Africans invites the world, we must receive our guests in a setting that values them, and values us. Hip Hop culture transformed corporate business in America and the world. Ask Apple, Louis Vuitton or Adidas where their stock market value would be today if it wasn’t for the Hip Hop culture contribution. Check the business portfolio of Hip Hop billionaires such as Dr. Dre, Jay Z, Diddy or Kanye West. Read about South Korea multibillion-dollar returns after injecting some black culture in their creative investment policies. As Moshions’ Moses Turahirwa is the Face of PSG’s Visit Rwanda, next time J-Cole he is in town, J-Cole should be signing with House of Tayo, Sonia Mugabo, Tap and Go, DM-Hehe.. Yesterday, your humble servant hosted Nigerian music sensation Mr. Eazi for a podcast on ‘artpreneurship’ at Atelier. Mr. Eazi has toured the world with his music, and visited top venues, but when he got to the venue, he asked the owner if he could design his home. Even savant painter Boubou Niang, from Senegal, known on Instagram as ‘Boubou Design’ did a live painting show at Soy and sold a painting at 100.000 dollars. Kigali was simply the place to be last week. The BAL was an outstanding success, not only in terms of tourism, but in terms of Pan-Africanism and of global exchange. Amid a global pandemic, Rwanda knew how to provide a safe space for African talents to express themselves. NBA legends were in Kigali, Mutombo Dikembe was here, Masai Ujiri was there, Joakim Noah was there, Didier Ilunga-Mbenga was there; sons of Africa who were proud to return home and receive a dignified welcome. When they go back to the United States, only two words will be on their lips: Visit Rwanda! And it is only just the beginning. Karengera Kirenga, commonly known as Eric Soul, is a pan-African DJ and cultural activist based in Kigali.
