Sony, Josplay Ink Deal To Challenge Africa’s Music Identity Crisis

The global streaming war for African music has intensified with Sony Music Entertainment’s latest move to license over 4,000 classic tracks to the niche platform Josplay.

While the deal significantly expands the reach of legendary catalogues like Lusafrica and Africa Nostra, it also spotlights a growing tension in the industry, the struggle to categorise African music beyond the generic “Afrobeats” label used by major Western platforms.

The partnership integrates three decades of music into Josplay’s system, including works by Grammy winner Cesária Évora, Bonga, and Boubacar Traoré. These recordings, recently acquired by Sony Music France and Sony Music Publishing France, cover genres as distinct as Cape Verdean Morna, Juju, and Gnawa, which are often buried under pop-centric algorithms on larger services.

Josplay’s Chief Operating Officer, George Ogala, noted that the collaboration is a response to a specific market gap. “African music is diverse,” Ogala stated, adding that the platform’s “Frames” tool aims to curate music based on daily activities rather than broad, often inaccurate, regional tags.