Nigerian startup AmplifiHub has developed an online platform that empowers music producers, arrangers and songwriters in Africa to connect with more customers and make more money.
Founded in 2019, AmplifiHub provides musicians with revenue generating opportunities like owning an online beat store, connects them with potential customers via a chat feature, and helps them collaborate with creative peers and get access to quality African loops and samples.
Ezekiel Olayinka, the startup’s operations lead, told Disrupt Africa how musicians and music producers often struggled to monetise their creations.
“We’re trying to fill that gap by creating a market space where sound composers and all other non-front facing creative such as sound engineers, mixers and songwriters can monetise their creativity and their musical works,” he said.
“Creating opportunities, where producers can access a wider range of market beyond their immediate local physical and day-to-day artists, is what we are achieving through AmplifiHub.”
Basically, a producer can sign up to the platform and connect with other producers, songwriters, artists or general creatives who may want to work with them. In that regard, it is unique as an e-commerce platform.
“We are an early market entrant trying to solve this particular problem in Africa particularly, but when you look outside of Africa we have Airbit, Splice, BeatPro and a couple of other e-commerce platforms for sound composers and producers,” Olayinka said.
“But as far as Africa, which is our immediate market and where we are currently focused, is concerned we currently do not have any top competition trying to solve the problem we are trying to solve or trying to bridge the gap that we see in the creative space in Africa.”
Self-funded so far, AmplifiHub has nonetheless already hit the 10,000 user mark, and has facilitated more than two million beat plays.
“The uptake has really been impressive when you consider the number of producers in Nigeria and also in Africa. A lot of young producers are now signing up to understand that their beat can actually go beyond their immediate community,” said Olayinka.
“We’ve also been seeing sound engineers, songwriters and composers, and even voice-over creators signing up on the platform. The uptake has been inspiring considering the niche size of the producer and creator community that we are focusing on.”
AmplifiHub currently makes revenues from adverts, revenue shares from beat sales, and licensing. However, Olayinka said for now it is focusing on getting its producers out there and giving them the opportunity to collaborate, engage and interact.
“We want to monetise but our next four-to-five year plan is not about monetisation as core but creating a vehicle-like platform where producers can access lots of tools, collaborate with one another, and can export their sounds across Africa and the world,” he said.
