During a fireside chat at the 2019 Google for Nigeria event held in Lagos, Lyor Cohen, YouTube’s Global Head of Music stated that YouTube is committed to supporting 10 upcoming artistes in Nigeria.
Cohen said that at the initial phase, YouTube will be teaming up with Nigerian Musician, Mr Eazi’s ’emPawa Africa Initiative’, to support 10 emerging Nigerian musicians to build their craft, increase their fan base and connect with the world through YouTube.
“The contributions will go toward enabling the artists to shoot videos, record music and get mentoring. It is critical to develop the next generation of talents and there is so much talents exploding out of Nigeria and the African continent right now; as Africa is setting the tempo all around the globe.
“We are incredibly proud that YouTube has been a mainline for African artists to connect all over the world. By supporting one of the leading African trail – blazers like Mr Eazi and his emPawa initiative, we are excited to see how these artists supercharge their careers and grow their fan base on YouTube.”
He also stated that part of its long- term commitment to supporting emerging Nigerian talents, YouTube would be working with a number of key partners locally and would share more in the coming months.
Cohen said in recognising D’Banj and 2Baba channels’ subscriber growth, YouTube presented them with Silver Play Button awards respectively at YouTube Week in Nigeria.
He further stated that Yemi Alade and Flavour would be presented with Gold Play Button, while Adekunle Gold and Teni would claim Silver Play Buttons at a cultural evening event during Google for Nigeria.
The Gold Play Buttons according to him were awarded to channels which had reached the one million subscriber mark and Silver to those that had garnered 100,000 subscribers.
Responding to the new development, Singer Mr Eazi revealed that the emPawa Africa was an initiative he created to assist new and upcoming artists, equipping them with the tools, knowledge, network and investment they need to become independent music entrepreneurs
He said, “emPawa is an initiative I created with one simple mission; helping new artists reach their full potential musically by equipping them with the knowledge and funding to do so.
“It is something I wish someone had created when I first started making music. Sometimes, all it takes is one person to believe in you.
“Thus far, emPawa has supported 22 Nigerian artists and 100 artists in total across 11 African countries with training to build their skills through digital platforms such as YouTube. Among the success stories is Nigerian singer Joeboy , whose emPawa – backed single release “ Baby” has over 5.9 million views on YouTube.”
He further noted that this partnership with YouTube would take emPawa and its artists to a whole new level as well as also enabling the artists go far with the backing of such a global company.