Urban Africa is a love letter to the bustling African metropolises south of the great desert—Dakar, Kigali, Lagos, Addis Ababa, and Johannesburg, to name a few—that are dynamic, diverse, and more traveler-ready than ever. Find more inspiration here.
Afropop luminary Oluwatosin Ajibade, better known as Mr Eazi, has brought the sounds of Africa to the world. With more than 4 billion streams of his own hits and collaborations with superstars like Beyoncé and Bad Bunny, the pioneer of Banku music—an Afrobeats subgenre that mixes Ghanaian highlife with Nigerian chord progressions—is setting the stage for something even bigger. The time has come, he says, for African music, unadulterated and on its own terms.
The shift between artist and disruptor-entrepreneur has come naturally for Mr Eazi, who grew up in Lagos, Nigeria, and Accra, Ghana, twin poles of the Afrobeats landscape. Following his 2016 breakout success with singles “Skin Tight” and “Leg Over,” he founded EmPawa Africa, a talent incubator for bringing up artists from across the continent. Launching stars including Joeboy and Major League Djz, the company is now one of Africa’s largest independent music labels. Mr Eazi’s commitment to pan-Africanism is also echoed in his 2023 debut full-length album, The Evil Genius, which features guest appearances from Benin’s Angélique Kidjo, Ghana’s Efya, and South Africa’s Soweto Gospel Choir.
We caught up with the Afrobeats pioneer as he was nailing down the details for this year’s Detty Rave, his end-of-year festival in Accra, to hear his tips for “getting detty” in Accra and Lagos; ask him why he thinks Kampala, Uganda, and Cape Town are great music cities; and coax out a couple under-the-radar destinations that travelers should have on their list.
Source: CNTraveler