Universal Music Group partners Boomplay to expand streaming license  across 47 African countries

• New partnership will see UMG expand from 7 to 47 countries with expanded listening experiences on Boomplay

Charles Abuede

Leading African streaming platform and download service, Boomplay, has entered into streaming license partnership with the Universal Music Group (UMG), a world leader in music-based entertainment  in a landmark collaboration that will see the global music catalogue of UMG expand from 7 to 47 African countries. The partnership is part of an extended relationship that will benefit African musicians and talent and also expand the listening experiences of Boomplay users on the continent.

The UMG revealed on Monday that the new licensing agreement will significantly boost the availability of UMG’s African and International repertoire to music fans across Africa; new markets include South Africa, Ethiopia, Côte d’Ivoire, Cameroon and Senegal; with UMG catalogue now also widely available across French-speaking territories for the first time.

Phil Choi, Boomplay’s Director of Content & Strategy, in his comments on the partnership said: “Since our original deal with UMG, the African music industry has seen exponential growth and made huge strides towards being the next powerhouse that it should be. We’re excited to continue partnering with the UMG team to help promote their African and international artists by bringing their catalogue to even more regions across Africa.”

Also speaking during the license signing, Franck Kacou, Managing Director, Universal Music Africa, who leads UMG’s activity across French-speaking Africa said, “We are excited for our artists and labels to be available now to music fans across these 25 French-speaking countries, but also to reach audiences across the rest of the continent. Africa is rich with artistic talent and musical culture and continues to inspire millions of Africans for whom music is an essential part of their daily lives. Working alongside Boomplay, we will help introduce these talents to new audiences, as the appetite for music continues to grow throughout these countries.”

Sipho Dlamini, South Africa and Sub-Saharan African CEO of Universal Music Group stated that: “We are delighted to expand our relationship with Boomplay, who over the past few years have shown themselves to be dedicated to providing the best in music to fans across the continent. Through this extended agreement, Boomplay will now help supply improved access to the world’s largest and most diverse music catalogue to their broad user base, as we continue to introduce the best in African and international music to the rapidly growing streaming audience across Africa.”

Elsewhere, Tosin Sorinola, who is the Director of Artist and Media relations at Boomplay said: “We are very optimistic that this expansion will further embed the blossoming relationship between both parties. As a platform, we are committed to ensuring that we help artists spread their music and that our users have access to all the music they love wherever they are. This expansion will afford us an opportunity to help open up more music to our users and opportunities for artists in the new regions.”

Furthermore, the license agreement accentuates UMG’s ongoing commitment to prop up and grow Africa’s domestic music ecosystems, while also creating new opportunities for Pan-African talent to reach new audiences domestically, regionally and globally.