While destinations such as Ibiza and Berlin often come to mind when it comes to electronic music and dance music tourism, Africa has a dance music culture that is entirely underrated. It should not come as a surprise that Africa is a hub for electronic music considering the strong cultural ties African culture has to music and dance across the continent. For decades, well-known artists have pulled directly from the influence of African-inspired music, beats, and rythmns that are incorporated into their own tracks. To shine a light on the growing electronic music culture in Africa, Apple Music has launched Isgubhu as the go-to destination for African dance and electronic music.
From Oasis Festival in Morocco to Ultra in South Africa, African has created an electronic music culture that fully justifies a dedicated platform to showcase Africa’s electronic music scene and artists. Isgubhu is a Zulu word meaning “beat” (specifically referring to a banging song), which is a perfect fit for a music station focused on the beats that make you want to dance. Dedicated to the African artists and music that have played a pivotal role in shaping the dance music we know today, the platform showcases world-renowned local artists including Black Coffee, Prince Kaybee, Black Motion, DJ Lag, and more. Within the platform, there will be several sub-genres ranging from traditional African house music to trance. The station will also house a wide-variety of African vocalists that are featured on electronic music tracks.
Each month, the station will host a spotlight via Isgubhu By to showcase a hand-picked artist that will curate playlist series for that month. According to Stephen Campbell, Apple Music’s Global Head of Dance and Electronic Music, “Apple Music has been a long term supporter of the incredible DJs, artists and producers within the Dance and Electronic music community in Africa and we’re very excited about the launch of Isgubhu. Our regional teams are true advocates for the culture and we’re committed to continuing to connect artists to a global audience.” This is a major step for Apple Music as the brand pays homage to dance music in a burgeoning location, but an even bigger step for African artists to have a central hub for fans to enjoy within their own countries.
