Africa’s music and creative industries are commanding growing global attention, but converting that cultural influence into sustainable economic value remains a critical challenge.
At the just-concluded Creative Africa Nexus Weekend (CANEX WKND 2026), three senior executives from Chocolate City Group contributed to conversations on how the continent can build stronger creative businesses, improve revenue collection and unlock the full commercial potential of its intellectual property.
At the conference, Abuchi Peter Ugwu, Chief Executive Officer of Chocolate City Group; Ibukun “Aibee” Abidoye, Executive Vice President of Chocolate City Music; and Ifeyinwa Anyadiegwu, Vice President, Head of Businesses & Legal Affairs at Chocolate City Group, participated in masterclasses and industry discussions examining the business structures essential to Africa’s creative economy.
Held recently at the Wole Soyinka Centre for Cultural & Creative Arts in Lagos, CANEX WKND 2026, according to a statement, brought together creators, business leaders, policymakers and investors from across Africa and the diaspora under the theme One People, United in Culture, Creating for the World.
Leading Chocolate City’s participation, Abuchi Peter Ugwu delivered a masterclass titled Creation of Music as part of the CANEX Music Business Lab, taking participants through the journey of transforming a song from a creative idea into a commercially viable asset.
Drawing on nearly 25 years of experience across artist development, record labels, distribution and brand partnerships, Ugwu explored the fundamental decisions that determine whether a promising musician can build a sustainable career.
Using a fictional emerging artist as a practical case study, he addressed the importance of clearly defining music ownership, documenting songwriting contributions, understanding publishing and master rights, selecting suitable distribution partners and developing deliberate release strategies.
Beyond the technicalities of music ownership, Ugwu challenged the notion that talent or viral popularity alone guarantees commercial success.
His presentation emphasised the value of genuine fan communities, audience intelligence, strategic marketing and professional teams in sustaining an artist’s growth.
He also examined the importance of understanding digital streaming platforms, testing audience responses before committing significant marketing resources, and negotiating partnerships from a position of knowledge and leverage.
The session reinforced the need for African artists to approach music not only as a form of creative expression but as intellectual property requiring deliberate management, investment and long-term commercial planning.
For Ugwu, building a successful music career extends beyond producing a hit record; it requires creating the structures that allow artists, their teams and the wider industry to benefit sustainably from the value of their work.
Addressing the revenue gap in Africa’s Music Industry, Ibukun “Aibee” Abidoye, Executive Vice President of Chocolate City Music, joined industry leaders at the Music Roundtable: Rights, Royalties and Revenue in African Music, as part of the CANEX IP Rights Summit.
The discussion examined the widening gap between Africa’s growing musical influence and the financial returns generated for creators and rights holders, with particular attention to copyright administration, royalty collection and the effectiveness of existing music rights infrastructure.
Abidoye brought a record label executive’s perspective to the conversation, highlighting the structural limitations that continue to affect revenue generation across the industry.
A central concern emerging from her contribution was the need to strengthen music data management and ensure that rights information is accurately captured, integrated and connected to the systems responsible for identifying music usage and collecting royalties.
While African music continues to attract substantial audiences, weak data infrastructure and gaps in collection management can prevent the industry from fully realising its commercial potential.
Addressing these limitations requires greater coordination, operational efficiency and accountability across the music value chain.
Her contribution also underscored the importance of looking beyond individual commercial successes to examine the broader systems needed to support a financially sustainable music industry.
The urgency of these reforms was reflected in research presented during the summit by the Music Economy Development Initiative (MEDI), which estimated that Nigeria and Kenya could collectively generate approximately $285 million annually from their music industries if copyright and royalty collection systems were strengthened.
For an industry experiencing increasing international consumption, the conversation highlighted an important reality: global visibility must be matched by the infrastructure required to capture, administer and distribute the revenues generated by African music.
Extending the discussion beyond music creation and royalty administration, Ifeyinwa Anyadiegwu, Vice President, Head of Businesses & Legal Affairs at Chocolate City Group, according to the statement contributed to a masterclass titled Protecting and Monetising African Creative IP Across Borders.
Delivered in collaboration with legal professionals from G. Elias, the masterclass examined intellectual property from three interconnected perspectives: identifying and protecting creative assets, commercialising rights, and positioning intellectual property for financing and investment.
Leading the commercialisation segment, Anyadiegwu explored how African creators and creative businesses can transform intellectual property into multiple revenue opportunities through licensing, distribution, merchandising, brand partnerships, adaptations and cross-border commercial arrangements.
Her presentation emphasised the importance of understanding not only what a creator owns, but also how those rights can be strategically deployed to generate income without unnecessarily sacrificing long-term commercial opportunities.
Through practical scenarios involving global brand partnerships and international film distribution, she examined the implications of contractual provisions such as exclusivity, territory, duration, permitted usage and ownership of derivative works.
A key consideration was the need for African creators to negotiate commercial arrangements with a clear understanding of the rights being granted and the future opportunities those agreements may restrict.
Related News
Source: