Nigerian Artists Face Low Streaming Payouts Despite Growth

In 2025, Nigerian artists earned around ₦1.98 per stream on Spotify, totaling over ₦60 billion from 30.3 billion streams. However, the blended rate for Nigerian listeners was $0.33 per 1,000 streams, significantly lower than the global average of $3.67.

Apple Music's rate was slightly better at $0.56 per 1,000 streams, but still 91% below its global average of $6.15. To earn $1,000 from Nigerian listeners, an artist would require approximately 3.03 million Spotify streams or 1.77 million Apple Music streams.

The payout structure is based on a percentage of each country's subscription pool, leading to lower earnings in Nigeria due to a smaller local pool. Despite a 140% increase in Spotify payouts since 2023, growth stalled between 2024 and 2025, with local listening surging by 170%.

Nigerian acts dominated local charts, and independent artists received 58% of the royalties, including Ric Hassani and Nasboi.