With increased penetration of Internet, Nigerians with access to various platforms have had to be creative in pursuing new platforms to distribute their music. Soundcloud which has constituted a popular outlet for this is growing in significance.

In Nigeria, if an artist—or, more likely, a label—want to create buzz for new records, they need their music to be in wide rotation across the country. And that meant spending millions of Naira hiring national radio promoters who can maneuver through the open and secret channels of the industry.

Fast-forward many years and the standard model for getting your music played on commercial radio isn’t all that different. What has changed is our listening habits. We have more options now. There’s still terrestrial radio, of course (including commercial, university radio stations), plus satellite radio services, genre-specific online programs, podcasts, customizable streaming radio platforms like Deezer and Apple Music, and more.

While radio is important for commercial artistes, it is Soundcloud which caters to the niche artistes of Nigeria. Certain artistes who fit the generic description for these such as Simi, Adekunle Gold and Asa have gone pop, but a teeming mass of others still remain. That’s where Soundcloud comes to play. Nigeria is blessed with a variety of talents, and since they all can’t get a spot on radio, they have depended on the online platform for streaming their music to millions of people.

Nigerian music on Souncloud come in all sorts - from avid hobbyists, to popular stars, the platform is filled with Nigerian music. But it is the niche R&B and Hip-hop artistes who still hold us spellbound.

For R&B, OzzyB/Santi is one of them. The 24 year old rapper, singer, songwriter and aspiring film director is a popular name, with an average of 6,000 streams per track. Tay Iwar is also another player in the genre, amassing an average of 15,000 streams on a song. Raised in Lagos and Abuja, he began creating music at age fourteen. After co-creating Bantu Collective  in 2013, Tay released his debut compilation, 'Passport', in April 2014. Although it was under promoted and performed poorly upon its release, the album became a sleeper hit and helped Tay garner commercial standing. His 2016 release, “Renascentia”  is still a favorite.  Tomi Thomas is a man for all seasons, leveraging on Soundcloud to grow his work. He averages 500 streams per song.

Hip-hop has the highest number of users. With a healthy underground scene all over the country, Nigeria Hip-hop is a huge attraction on Soundcloud. Popular names include Phlow, Paybac, Boogie, Eclipse, Paybac, Charlie X, and BrisB and many more.

The defining characteristic of these artistes is their attention to content and lyrical composition. They make what can be referred to as ‘intelligent’ music. For many of these artistes, they understand that their sounds are too advanced for mainstream radio, so they concentrate their marketing online, and generate as much buzz as they can for their works.

Will they ever cross and pop? Cross? Yes. Pop? Possible but difficult. The main strength of their work – lyrics and a deeper melody – is also their bane offline. Genre diversity on mainstream radio continues to wane, as the behemoth of pop music keeps growing larger.

Perhaps, one day, the culture will experience a reset, and attention will shift to the ‘intelligent’ music. But for now, head to Soundclound, and update your playlist. It’s worth every space and time.