Recent reports suggested that Spotify was\u00a0keen on joining YouTube and Amazon Music<\/a>\u00a0in securing livestreaming rights to music festivals.\n\n\n\n\n\n<\/p> That\u2019s not quite what it\u2019s doing with\u00a0Afro Nation Portugal<\/a>, but the partnership shows Spotify\u2019s continued ambitions to grow its activities with these kinds of events.\n\n\n\n\n\n<\/p> The deal sees Spotify become the official \u2018sponsor and exclusive streaming partner\u2019 for the three-day Afrobeats-focused festival, which takes place this weekend in Portim\u00e3o, Portugal.\n\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n The streaming service will launch an Afro Nation hub on its service with an official playlist and \u201cselected performance videos after the event\u201d\u00a0according to Nigerian news outlet Business Day<\/a>.\n\n\n\n\n\n<\/p> \u201cAfro Nation is more than a festival, it is a global expression of African music, fan culture and creative influence,\u201d said Spotify\u2019s content marketing manager for sub-Saharan Africa Rifumo Mdaka.\n\n\n\n\n\n<\/p> This is all part of Spotify\u2019s ongoing activities around Afrobeats. Since last September it has\u00a0launched a \u2018Global Afrobeats\u2019 playlist<\/a>; added\u00a0a dedicated Afrobeats section<\/a>\u00a0to its news site; run a\u00a0three-week \u2018Greasy Tunes Caf\u00e9\u2019 pop-up<\/a>\u00a0in Lagos; and\u00a0debuted a \u2018Culture Club\u2019 podcast focused on the scene<\/a>.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n<\/p> Spotify also recently revealed that\u00a0in 2025 it paid out more than N60bn<\/a>\u00a0(around $44.3m) in royalties for music by Nigerian artists. That was up just 3.4% year-on-year, although currency shifts were a key factor there: the payouts were up more than 140% compared to 2023.\n\n\n\n\n\n<\/p> Meanwhile, Afrobeats artists have continued to hit new milestones on Spotify:\u00a03bn streams for Ayra Starr<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a010bn for Wizkid<\/a>\u00a0being two of the recent landmarks. Wizkid is the Sunday-night draw for Afro Nation Portugal this week, with Burna Boy, Tyla and Asake among the other headliners.\n\n\n\n\n\n<\/p>