5 years in the past, Spotify quietly entered Nigeria. At the moment, it’s clear that the connection between Nigerians and streaming tradition has developed into one thing highly effective.

When the platform launched in February 2021, the primary track streamed by a Nigerian person was not even Afrobeats. It was a Cantopop ballad by Shiga Lin from Hong Kong. That surprising alternative set the tone for what would comply with: Nigerians embracing a worldwide soundscape whereas nonetheless fiercely pushing their very own music to the forefront.

Since then, the numbers have grown in ways in which replicate each ardour and consistency. Nigerian customers have created over 25 million playlists since launch, curating moods, heartbreaks, gymnasium classes, worship moments, and late-night drives into personalised soundtracks. In 2025 alone, listeners spent greater than 1.4 billion hours on the platform. That isn’t informal listening. That’s tradition.

The common Spotify person in Nigeria is simply 26 years outdated, reinforcing how youth vitality continues to drive music developments. Listening on the platform has elevated by greater than 163 p.c 12 months on 12 months since 2021. On the identical time, the variety of Nigerian artists distributing their music on Spotify has grown by 158 p.c, which means extra creatives are exporting Nigerian sound to international audiences.

In the case of dominance, the previous 5 years belong to some acquainted names. Asake, Wizkid, Seyi Vibez, Burna Boy, and Davido are the 5 most-streamed artists in Nigeria inside this era. Asake stands tall on the high, with 4 songs rating among the many ten most-streamed tracks within the nation over 5 years. His track “Bear in mind” leads the pack.

Afrobeats stays the heartbeat of this progress, increasing by over 5,000 p.c since 2021. However Nigerian listeners will not be limiting themselves. Amapiano has skilled explosive progress of over 10,000 p.c. Gospel and reward music are additionally seeing huge momentum, alongside hip hop, rap, and R&B. Much more telling is the 554 p.c rise in streams of songs carried out in Nigerian indigenous languages in 2024 alone. The viewers is clearly reconnecting with native tales and native expression.

Past music, podcasts are carving their very own house. Nigerians have streamed almost 60 million hours of podcast content material since Spotify’s arrival, displaying a robust urge for food for conversations, storytelling, and data in audio type.

5 years in, one factor is plain. Nigeria is not only taking part in international streaming tradition. It’s shaping it.