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When Universal Music Group East Africa (UMG EA), a division of one of the world's biggest music labels - Universal Music Group - announced the signing of Kenyan singer, songwriter, and producer Njerae two weeks ago, the news elicited mixed reactions, albeit on social media.
Njerae's news came just a few months after singer Nikita Kering's licensing deal with UMG South Africa came to an end.
A label licensing deal is a contract between an artist and a music label that allows the label to release and market the artist's music. The deal outlines the rights and obligations of both parties, including how revenue is shared.
Universal says it has shifted its attention and resources to supporting a new breed of talent that hasn't been on the public radar as much, but whose potential can't be ignored.
"For some time now, UMG EA has been running on half a tank, but the time has come for us to replicate our successful blueprints from other markets in East Africa. What we want to do here is what we have already done successfully in other markets such as Nigeria, South Africa, and elsewhere." Said a UMG spokesperson to Buzz.
And went on to say;
"There isn't a single international star, be it from Nigeria or South Africa or anywhere else in Africa, who isn't signed to a label with UMG at the forefront. Name one if there is one. Our job as a label is to accelerate talent potential because when an artist explodes, we all win."
Enters Njerae.
Sometimes described as Kenya's alte ambassador, Njerae's music is described as Afro-Indie with a touch of R&B and soul.
She boasts just over 55,000 monthly listeners on digital streaming platform Spotify.
Her journey in the music industry began in the corridors of Sauti Academy before she made her mark on the live circuit.
It is understood that Njerae's deal with UMG EA is a 360 recording deal. A 360 deal is an exclusive contract between a record label and an artist that covers all aspects of the artist's career.
The label receives a percentage of the artist's earnings from all revenue streams, not just music sales, and in return, the artist receives financial and other support, including but not limited to marketing and promotion of their music.
"With Njerae it feels like it's a clean slate. A breath of fresh air and I can assure you it will be a success story because she is so talented but all she lacks is the support she now has at her disposal. All we can do is wait for her to explode," the spokesperson added.
UMG EA had been scouting Njerae for two years before both parties entered into negotiations that culminated in the multi-talented artist signing the deal two weeks ago.
"These things take time for a decision to be made, we had been following Njerae's development for two years. Also, once you make an offer to an artist, you have to give them time to think about it, go through the contract, consult a lawyer or an expert, and things like that before they can make a decision," the boss added.
For Universal Music Group, Njerae's niche music, if well amplified and marketed, would become a target for the mass market.
"And that's what we want to achieve, to expand her fan base by promoting her music more. We want her to do shows all over the world, to grace events like Paris Fashion Week and things like that, where celebrities are paid huge amounts of money to perform. I see this deal as a win-win situation not only for Njerae and Universal but also for the Kenyan music industry. We want to give other labels a reason to come and set up shop in East Africa and help develop and nurture talent".
Why Kenyan artists struggle to go international
On the raging debate as to why Kenyan artists appear to struggle to go international, the music expert noted a few concerns.
Having lived and worked in different parts of the world, the expert identifies a lack of proper understanding among Kenyan artists as a key teething problem.
"Artists in Kenya are incredibly talented no doubt about that. But the problem is the majority tend to listen more to their peers for career advice than the music experts. They don't seem to realize that this is competition. Why would you take advice from your competitor? And that's why you see these debates about music labels not being good enough. If music labels are not good, then why is it that almost every money-making A-list artist you can think of is signed to a record label? posed the music expert.
To further illustrate the point, the honcho cites the example of Burna Boy.
"A few years ago, he used to come to Kenya for shows that paid Sh2 million or Sh5 million. He can't take that now under any circumstances. Back then, Burna was already big, he had a mansion in the leafy suburbs of Nigeria, he drove the best cars, and he was already doing well as an independent artist. But how he became an international star was when he realized he couldn't do it all on his own and signed with Atlantic Records. He now commands a performance fee of no less than one million US dollars (Sh128 million)".
Burna Boy signed with Atlantic Records, a division of Warner Music Group in 2017, which helped him release his third studio album 'Outside' in 2018. In 2019, Burna won Best International Act at the BET Awards and was named an Apple Music Next Up artist.
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