Nigerian Platform Pays Artists in Local Currency

When a song called "Gratitude" hit three million streams on YouTube, its Nigerian creator Kdiv Coco faced an unexpected problem. Despite the viral success, getting paid proved nearly impossible because most music platforms required PayPal accounts or dollar cards that many African artists couldn't access.

Music producer Melody Nemeyer watched this happen over and over in Abuja's music scene. Songs would explode online, rack up huge streaming numbers, then generate little to nothing for the people who created them.

So in December 2024, Nemeyer and software developer Obed Ugwu launched SongDis to fix the broken system. The platform distributes African music to over 200 streaming services worldwide, including Spotify, Apple Music, and TikTok, but with one game-changing difference: artists can withdraw their royalties directly in African currencies.

The setup takes less than a minute on a smartphone. Artists upload their songs, add contributor details, and SongDis handles the rest. Built-in tools help resize album artwork, generate covers, and translate complex analytics into plain language.

The platform also tracks performance royalties from TV plays and live shows, money streams that independent musicians often miss entirely. Real-time dashboards show exactly what each song is earning and where those streams are coming from geographically.

The Ripple Effect

SongDis charges between 2,500 and 10,000 naira monthly depending on the plan, making professional music distribution accessible to creators who were previously locked out. For artists needing hands-on marketing support, the platform takes 18 to 20 percent commission while letting creators keep full ownership of their work.

The approach mirrors how international labels operate but removes the barriers that kept African musicians from participating in the global music economy. Producers and songwriters can also pay a one-time fee to have SongDis collect royalties they didn't even know they were owed.

What started as Nemeyer helping friends navigate foreign payment systems has become infrastructure built specifically for Africa's exploding music scene. Now the value that was quietly draining away is flowing back to the people creating the hits.

Artists with talent and an internet connection finally have the same tools as musicians anywhere else in the world.