In comparison to its two biggest African markets, Nigeria and South Africa, where the royalty payments from Spotify increased to $59 million in last year.
As performers sped a wave of a growing continent-specific interest in music, the audio-streaming giant paid out about $10 billion in royalties worldwide in 2024.
And despite having a small share of its offerings, African artists’ interest has grown, thanks in large part to internationally acclaimed artists like Nigeria’s Burna Boy and South African singer Tyla.
More than double the amount paid in royalties to Nigerian artists in 2023, or 58 billion naira ($38 million) in revenue.
South African performers’ royalties totaled 400 million rand ($21 million), up 54% year over year.
A lot of that came from outside their local markets. Over the past three years, export growth in Nigeria has increased by 49%, while export growth in South Africa has increased by 104%.
According to the Swedish company’s report released on Thursday, at least one South African artist is currently present in at least 250 million user-created playlists, and 220 million of those are South African.
According to Jocelyne Muhutu-Remy, managing director of Spotify for Sub-Saharan Africa, “what we’re seeing is an excellent evolution around more mid-tier or up-and-coming artists making a living.”
Read more about Gospel singer Nathaniel Bassey and other Nigerian acts making the top 100 most popular videos on YouTube globally in Q1 2025.
The number of Nigerian artists making N10 million has, in contrast, doubled from 2022 to the same time last year.
In the first quarter of the year 2025, Nigerian gospel artists Nathaniel Bassey,  , Mercy Chinwo, and Moses Bliss have recorded their names among the most-streamed acts on YouTube Music.
Debut Hub’s data compiled 52.8 million streams, followed by Mercy Chinwo, who came in second with 46.4 million, and Moses Bliss, who received 41.5 million.
While Nathaniel Bassey’s best-performing songs, including “Yahweh Sabaoth,” which features Mercy Chinwo Blessed, have amassed 25 million plays, and “Jesus Iye,” which has earned 32 million plays to date, are among her standout songs.
Rema’s dominance, along with other notable Nigerian artists like Burna Boy, Davido, Wizkid, and Ayra Starr, continued in the top 20 most-streamed artists’ charts in Q1 2025.
With his hit “Calm Down,” starring Selena Gomez, which has now reached a groundbreaking 2.5 billion plays, Rema amassed an impressive 223 million streams.
The top 20 most popular Nigerian artists globally on YouTube Music in Q1 2025 are listed below.
Before revealing new footage from his most recent “Mission: Impossible” film, Tom Cruise paid tribute to late “Top Gun” co-star Val Kilmer on Thursday at a CinemaCon event in a moment of silence.
At the start of his eagerly awaited keynote address at the annual industry summit in Las Vegas, Cruise said, “I’d like to honor a dear friend of mine, Val Kilmer.”
“I really can’t tell you how much I admired his work, how much I thought of him as a person, and how grateful and honored I was when he joined “Top Gun” and then returned for “Top Gun: Maverick,” said Cruise.
Actor Val Kilmer addresses the “Twixt” press conference at the TIFF Bell Lightbox on September 12, 2011 in Toronto, Canada. The New York Times reported on April 1 that American actor Val Kilmer passed away at the age of 65 after first achieving fame with “Top Gun” and later appearing in films as Batman and Jim Morrison. (Photo by Jason Merritt / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / AFP)  
Kilmer, one of the biggest Hollywood stars of the 1990s who rose to fame in the role of Iceman in the first film “Top Gun” in 1986, passed away at the age of 65, his family announced this week.
pneumonia was the cause of death. After being diagnosed in 2014, Kilmer had a battle with throat cancer and made his final appearance in the “Top Gun” 2022 sequel “Maverick” with a raspy voice. He was physically ill and had a raspy voice.
Cruise paused for a moment to reflect on the wonderful times we had while watching Kilmer on the big screen as he led the audience at Caesars Palace casino on Thursday.
Cruise addressed Kilmer, “I wish you well on your next journey.”
He thanked everyone for doing that, adding to the attendees: “Thank you all. He must appreciate it, I am certain.”
Kilmer’s breakout role was in “Top Gun.” He played the cocky, square-jawed, and largely silent fighter pilot in Tom “Iceman” Kazansky’s training, opposite Cruise.
In the long-awaited sequel “Top Gun: Maverick,” Kilmer’s real-life health issues were incorporated into the character.
Tom Cruise (L) presents Christopher McQuarrie with the “director of the year” award at the Paramount Pictures presentation at Las Vegas, Nevada, on April 3, 2025. (Photo by VALERIE MACON/AFP)
The final reckoning, the May 23 release date for “Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning,” was also announced by Cruise on Thursday.
Ethan Hunt, the ageless hero from Cruise’s film, is captured clinging to the wheels of a small biplane as it barrel rolls through the skies and descends a narrow canyon.
The trailer also featured numerous references to famous scenes from earlier in the eight-film blockbuster series, such as Cruise climbing the Burj Khalifa tower in Dubai and dangling between lasers.
On April 3, 2025, Channing Tatum, a US actor, performs live at CinemaCon 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada, at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace. (Photo by VALERIE MACON/AFP)Tom Cruise, a US actor/producer, performs live at CinemaCon 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada on April 3, 2025. (Photo by VALERIE MACON/AFP)
In what Paramount is marketing as supposedly the franchise’s final film, Cruise’s character says, “I need you to trust me one last time.
On April 3, 2025, Glen Powell, Colman Domingo, Tom Cruise, Edgar Wright, Josh Brolin, President and CEO of Paramount Pictures, Brian Robbins, President and CEO, attend the Paramount Pictures 2025 CinemaCon Footage Presentation at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, Nevada. Greg Doherty/GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/Getty Images for Paramount Pictures/AFP (Photo by Greg Doherty/GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/Getty Images via AFP)On April 3, 2025, Glen Powell and Tom Cruise take the stage at the Paramount Pictures 2025 CinemaCon Footage Presentation at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, Nevada. Greg Doherty/GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/Getty Images for Paramount Pictures/AFP (Photo by Greg Doherty/GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/Getty Images via AFP)
Russell Brand was formally charged with rape and a number of other sexual offenses by London’s Metropolitan Police on Friday.
After beginning a career as a stand-up comedian with risque routines, Brand, who later gained notoriety as the former husband of pop star Katy Perry, was also charged with one count of rape, indecent assault, and oral rape, as well as two counts of sexual assault, according to the police.
According to Crown Prosecution Service Jaswant Narwal, “We have authorized the Metropolitan Police to charge Russell Brand with a number of sexual offences today.”
Also read: Val Kilmer, the legendary “Top Gun” and “Batman” actor, Passes Away at 65.
Following a police investigation into allegations made after a Channel 4 documentary was broadcast in September 2023, we carefully examined the evidence.
Russell Brand should be accused of rape, sexual assault, and other indecent assault, we have come to the conclusion.
These relate to four women who were allegedly involved in non-recent crimes committed between 1999 and 2005.
The investigation is still ongoing, according to Met Detective Superintendent Andy Furphy.
He urged “anyone who has been affected by this case, or anyone with any information to come forward and speak with the police.”
In addition to the sexual assault and oral rape of a woman in 2004 in London’s central Westminster area, Brand is accused of raping a woman in 1999 in the Bournemouth area of England’s south coast.
He is also accused of sexually assaulting another woman between 2004 and 2005, both of which are alleged to have occurred in Westminster.
On May 2, Brand will appear before magistrates in Westminster.
Hollywood studio Universal Pictures on Wednesday teased new movies from Steven Spielberg and Christopher Nolan, while showcasing footage from its upcoming sequels “Jurassic World Rebirth” and “Wicked: For Good” at the CinemaCon event.
Spielberg “is currently shooting a film that promises to be a return to form, in the spirit of his monumental classics,” said Universal executive Jim Orr, at the movie theater industry summit in Las Vegas.
The untitled film, out June 2026, is widely rumored to be a blockbuster sci-fi. Orr promised it would contain “a propulsive, modern, out-of-this-world twist,” without sharing further details.
US actress Scarlett Johansson presents the film “Jurassic World Rebirth” onstage during the CinemaCon 2025 Universal Pictures and Focus Features presentation at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, Nevada, on April 2, 2025. (Photo by VALERIE MACON / AFP)US actor Mahershala Ali presents the film “Jurassic World Rebirth” onstage during the CinemaCon 2025 Universal Pictures and Focus Features presentation at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, Nevada, on April 2, 2025. (Photo by VALERIE MACON / AFP)
Meanwhile, Nolan is in the Mediterranean shooting his star-studded version of “The Odyssey,” based on the millennia-old Ancient Greek epic saga written by Homer.
It is due July 2026, starring Matt Damon as Odysseus, alongside Tom Holland, Zendaya and Anne Hathaway.
In a prediction bold even by the standards of Hollywood marketing, Orr suggested the film “will be a once-in-a-generation cinematic masterpiece that Homer himself would, quite frankly, be very proud of.”
The comments came at CinemaCon, an annual week-long summit at which Hollywood studios present their biggest upcoming movies to theater owners and press.
A theme of this year’s event has been a drive to get studios to commit to keeping new movies in US theaters for at least 45 days before they appear on streaming.
A source with knowledge of the talks told AFP Wednesday that three of Hollywood’s six biggest studios have committed.
Universal, which has in recent years brought many of its films to on-demand streaming very soon after they debut in theaters, has not yet agreed to the new 45-day “window,” the source said. The studio did not immediately comment.
But its efforts to court movie theater owners Wednesday included showing extended new footage and A-list stars from the next Jurassic movie — out this July.
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – APRIL 02: Mahershala Ali and Scarlett Johansson speak onstage to promote the upcoming film “Jurassic World Rebirth” at the Universal Pictures And Focus Features presentation during CinemaCon, the official convention of Cinema United, at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace on April 02, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Ethan Miller/Getty Images/AFP (Photo by Ethan Miller / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP)LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – APRIL 02: Mahershala Ali and Scarlett Johansson speak onstage to promote the upcoming film “Jurassic World Rebirth” at the Universal Pictures And Focus Features presentation during CinemaCon, the official convention of Cinema United, at The Colosseum at Caesars Palace on April 02, 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Ethan Miller/Getty Images/AFP (Photo by Ethan Miller / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP)
It comes from the writer of the original 1993 “Jurassic Park.” The action returns to that film’s island setting.
Unlike the “Jurassic World” films where dinosaurs freely roamed the globe, the fearsome reptiles are now once again scarce, surviving in a few remote spots.
Star Scarlett Johansson said the film would “put the scares back into Jurassic” by keeping the dinosaurs hidden and ratcheting up the suspense.
Universal’s presentation ended with surprise appearances from Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo, whose second and final “Wicked” film will hit theaters November.
On Wednesday, Innocent Idibia, a popularly known 2Baba singer, was seen in court where his new partner, Natasha Osarawu, is set to deliver his verdict.
As they entered the courtroom, 2baba and Natasha, a member of the Edo State House of Assembly, were seen holding hands.
Also read: 2baba Proposes to Edo lawmaker Natasha Osarawu
When 2baba first accompanied Natasha to a plenary in Benin City in February, the couple became a hit. Later, the singer-songwriter said he wanted to wed the legislator from Edo.
In a video that was widely shared on social media, he proposed to his wife shortly after making his declaration.
Before his relationship with Natasha was revealed, 2Baba’s relationship with actress Annie Idibia had sprang. However, the singer claimed that his romantic feelings for Osarawu are unrelated to their union.
Annie took a break from social media a few days ago, and she posted a message thanking her supporters for their support. She also changed her name from Idibia to Annie Uwana Macaulay.
Natasha is a member of the Peoples Democratic Party, which is contesting Governor Monday Okpebholo’s All-Progressive Party victory in the Edo State governorship election on September 21, 2024.
After the parties’ final written addresses, the three-man tribunal panel, led by Justice Wilfred Kpochi, reserved its decision on March 3.
