The African Hip Hop Blog Podcast

We are back!! Thank you to everyone who has rode with as we transitioned from The AHHB to Point Black. If you have questions they are explained in the podcast's intro. Join award-winning digital marketing expert Phil Chard as he mentors a group of talented podcasters in the PodQuest 2024 competition in Kenya. Phil shares his insights on building sustainable podcasts, engaging with audiences, and developing strong monetization strategies. Get valuable tips and insights on: • Building a loyal community • Leveraging collaboration • Using digital tools for growth • Creating a strong value proposition

Phil Chard was invited to be a panellist in an online discussion hosted by the British Council focused on Creative Industries and how best to build a sustainable business online The conversation was recorded as part of the "Creative Hustles Space" and was hosted by Fungai from Enthuse Afrika. The panellists were; • Phil Chard from Point Black Entertainment • Walter Wanyana from Ngoma Nehosho • Charlotte Kanter from Morse Code Key Takeaways: 1. Creative spaces and collaboration are essential 2. Challenges are common in the industry and more so in Zimbabwe 3. Understand the environment you are working in. Actionable Advice for Artists: • Create a dedicated creative space: Even if it's a small corner of your home, having a designated space for creative work can help you focus and be more productive. • Connect with other artists: Join online communities, attend workshops, and network with fellow creatives for support, inspiration, and collaboration. • Learn basic technical skills: Familiarize yourself with recording equipment, software, and troubleshooting techniques. • Plan and prepare for your recording sessions: Have a clear objective in mind, choose a quiet recording environment, and ensure your equipment is properly set up. • Embrace flexibility and adaptability: Challenges and interruptions are part of the creative process. Be prepared to adjust your plans, experiment with new approaches, and find creative solutions.

As part of The Music Industry Incubator workshop series, we invited artist manager Jack Mashala (Mas Musiq) to fly in from South Africa to have a 1 on 1 conversation with Phil Chard on how best to build a brand, what managers should be aware of and what artists can do to work with their management to build a revenue-generating brand.

This week The Music Industry Incubator hosts Aurelia J. Schultz who is an international copyright expert with 15 years of experience in African Copyright. She earned her BA in Religious Studies from Carroll College and her Juris Doctorate from Vanderbilt University Law School in Nashville. She began her legal career at Creative Commons where she was the first Africa Regional Coordinator. Most recently, she served as Counsel for Policy and International Affairs at the U.S. Copyright Office. She has trained artists, industry professionals and government officials around the world and enjoys collaborating with others to improve our global creative industries. What is A Music Copyright? A copyright is the legal mechanism that gives you a property right indoor creation. It changes you from a creator into an owner and that's important because property rights are alienable, which means that you can buy them and sell them, lease them, and rent them and trade them. Summary 00:51 Intro to Copyright 2:14 What is mechanical right 8:40 What is WIPO 10:15 Importance of treaties and how they affect you 16:00 As an artist who is collaborating how is copyright ownership determined 19:20 Who owns the sound recordings 24:00 How long does Copyright last 26:55 How to enforce your copyright 29:49 How to enforce your copyright 31:50 Protecting your copyright 35:00 How your copyright works across territories 40:15 How attribution works 45:01 How to protect your work 46:26 What do Public Domain and Fair Use mean 50:50 Copyrighting a sound using sheet music

This week we had artist, event promoter and content creator Game “Zeus” Bantsi to talk to us about his creative journey and how artists can come out of the pandemic with their best foot forward while also putting safeguards in place to ensure their careers are not completely derailed by unforeseen circumstances “It really breaks my heart that we have all these assets sitting in these institutions [banks] but it is not really accessible to us as creatives and other vulnerable communities” Notes 1. Understand the business of music 2. Think of your career and yourself as an business 3. Getting business loans as an artist is difficult. Your collateral assets are your Intellectual Property 4. Understand how your brand can generate revenue and refine that process 5. Learn as much across as many skillsets as possible Summary * 7:50 How he overcome Botswana’s small population to cross over regionally * 12:50 How Zeus used his education to further his career * 16:50 Understanding the business of music * 22:05 Can an artist access a business loan? * 28:50 How Zeus kept his career going during the pandemic * 38:12 Keeping the culture alive * 50:50 The importance of learning multiple tools for the creative business

The first of The Music Industry Incubator workshops kicked off on June 9 with Zimbabwean-born superstar producer Mr Kamera. In our chat, we covered a lot of topics that would be incredibly helpful to Zimbabwean musicians of all kinds. An edit of the conversation can be played and downloaded below. We also have detailed timestamped notes and resources that cover the issues we discussed that is available here https://www.musicindindustryincubator.com/blog/music-production-with-mr-kamera

Mutsai Musa has been running the creative incubator, Quiet Riot Media for 15 years. Quiet Riot Media has consulted for both international artists and large entertainment companies on intellectual property and copyright management, paying attention to protecting income streams and generating long-term revenue for creative projects. Recent clients include Apple Music Africa, Universal Music Publishing Group Africa, Sony Music Africa, Interscope Records (USA), Platoon Africa, LVRN Records (USA). In our chat with Mutsai, we discussed the various ways Zimbabwean artists can earn revenue as artists and what they can do to increase their earning potential. Summary of Earning Channels 1. Mechanical Royalties (Sales)  2. Publishing Royalties 3. Merchandise 4. Live Show Income Workshop Summary 4:35 How artists can be considered for Digital Service Provider Playlists Playlisting is the new radio and is a key part of getting your music discovered Your distributor plays a key part in getting playlisting Use UGC social media content platforms to promote your work Make sure your song is on radio 10:04 How to pitch yourself and your music  Have an EPK and marketing plan ready before you release a song That EPK should clearly state your DNA as an artist in 1 page WHO you are. WHERE you are going. WHAT information and data about you is available. 13:25 How to pitch yourself to festivals  14:11 The types of revenue available to artists Maximise show revenue when it is available Look into publishing as early as possible 23:11 How revenue is generated 26:06 The importance of working with others and building a team “Working alone is not beneficial. Would you rather have 100% of $10 or 50% of $100” Learn the fundamentals of the business 34:10 How to approach brand endorsements To get a brand endorsement you have to add value to the brand in question Brand endorsements are not a viable source of long-term revenue because brands are in business to sell products and not support artists 37:32 How to prepare your brand to become one that earns revenue Make yourself and your music easy to find. (Search Engine Optimisation) Website, Biography and press pics Market and promote yourself 41:30 The questions you need to ask a potential partner before you work with them Who have you worked with before? What do you know about the following; Distribution Publishing Sync Licensing Marketing Artist Management 43:40 How to prepare marketing and promotion budgets  49:50 TikTok presents the biggest opportunity for artists For reference here is the video from VOX that tracks the importance of TikTok

Munya Chanetsa is a well-known music executive and founder of M.O.T.I with more than 10 years of A&R and licensing experience. He has worked with mobile operators, CAPASSO and Sony Music Publishing amongst others. He has also been a featured presenter on music copyright at leading forums and conferences in South Africa, Angola, Uganda, Ghana, Nigeria and Zimbabwe. In this workshop, we cover the basics of publishing, how important it is for all songwriters and what avenues they can use to exploit their publishing to earn revenue. Summary Workshop Summary 1:15 The role of a publisher  Facilitate collaborations Place/exploit existing songs Sync mood music to movies, games, apps etc 6:30 What is a music library 8:40 How terms for Sync Licenses are used practically 9:01 Self Publishing versus signing with a publisher  Pros of self-publishing You retain 100% of your rights 100% of the revenue Cons of self-publishing More administrative work No help with A&R Have to sell yourself to collaborators 14:30 The Collective Management Organisations available to Zimbabwean artists and how licensing worst 17:25 What artists need to get a licensing deal

RayDizz is one of Zimbabwe's leading DJs and performers who has graced the stages of The Ministry of Sound, Marquee Las Vegas, Big Brother Africa, Vic Falls Carnival, HIFA and opened up for some of Africa's biggest stars. In this conversation he shares his advice on how young DJs can get started in the industry, build a brand, what equipment to use and where to legally source music. 4:45 How To prepare for a set 11:40 What are tone and pitch plays when DJ’ing 12:35 What equipment a new DJ needs Controllers versus CDJs 16:18 Reinvesting in equipment and the need to budget  21:20 The importance of management and booking agents 23:50 The viability of collaborations  27:20 RayDizz advice for upcoming DJs 37:05 How to get on a show promoter’s radar 40:40 The importance of YouTube as a teaching and promotional tool 39:55 The use of Record Pools and other legal purchasing platforms

In this episode of the AHHB Podcast we speak to South African DJ, Producer, rapper and accomplished IT Consultant Trompie aka Beatmochini aka Bleksperm. In our chat Beatmochini speaks to us about his career that has spanned almost 2 decades. From starting out in Pretoria to working with Khuli Chana on a SAMA winning album, getting his first gold plaque and travelling the world. Trompie also gives Phil some professional advice on how to delete porn from his PC and sheds some light on the issues surrounding his collaboration with Fifi Cooper just before her Ambitiouz exit. The producer also speaks to us about his upcoming March 10 EP which was sparked after he was challenged to make a 6 track collaborative project with only new artists by by Osmic. "6 joints? I can do that in my sleep" he boasted "In a week I was already done" Subscribe to the AHHB Podcast on; Website: https://goo.gl/SBzy1y iTunes: http://apple.co/29Tl7Rv Stitcher: http://bit.ly/2b3tgph Soundcloud: http://bit.ly/2b5FR8x YouTube: https://goo.gl/FmX9bJ TuneIn: http://goo.gl/p4kR9h AHHB on Twitter: https://twitter.com/africanhhb

In this episode of the AHHB Podcast we speak to South African DJ, Producer, rapper and accomplished IT Consultant Trompie aka Beatmochini aka Bleksperm. In our chat Beatmochini speaks to us about his career that has spanned almost 2 decades. From starting out in Pretoria to working with Khuli Chana on a SAMA winning album, getting his first gold plaque and travelling the world. Trompie also gives Phil some professional advice on how to delete porn from his PC and sheds some light on the issues surrounding his collaboration with Fifi Cooper just before her Ambitiouz exit. The producer also speaks to us about his upcoming March 10 EP which was sparked after he was challenged to make a 6 track collaborative project with only new artists by by Osmic. "6 joints? I can do that in my sleep" he boasted "In a week I was already done" Subscribe to the AHHB Podcast on; Website: https://goo.gl/SBzy1y iTunes: http://apple.co/29Tl7Rv Stitcher: http://bit.ly/2b3tgph Soundcloud: http://bit.ly/2b5FR8x YouTube: https://goo.gl/FmX9bJ TuneIn: http://goo.gl/p4kR9h AHHB on Twitter: https://twitter.com/africanhhb

In the first episode of the relaunched AHHB Podcast Phil Chard speaks to South African director Kyle Lewis. Read the full feature articie, here : https://wp.me/p3OahZ-6MS

In the first episode of the relaunched AHHB Podcast Phil Chard speaks to South African director Kyle Lewis. Read the full feature articie, here : https://wp.me/p3OahZ-6MS

Welcome back to the African Hip Hop Blog podcast. In what is possibly our biggest episode to date we have interviews with Solo, Riky Rick, Cassper Nyovest and Nasty C! Yes all four artists on 1 incredible 2 hour long episode. Sit back recharge your data and enjoy as we discussed Solo's album Dreams.B.Plenty before Cassper discusses his journey, filling up Orlando stadium and his fight for radio relevance. Riky speaks to us a bit his incredible fashion sense and the hit making formula he has cracked. Nasty C shares details of his meteoric rise to fame and the response to his new album Bad Hair. We also talk about the upcoming MTV Africa Music Awards. Enjoy

Welcome back to the African Hip Hop Blog podcast. In what is possibly our biggest episode to date we have interviews with Solo, Riky Rick, Cassper Nyovest and Nasty C! Yes all four artists on 1 incredible 2 hour long episode. Sit back recharge your data and enjoy as we discussed Solo's album Dreams.B.Plenty before Cassper discusses his journey, filling up Orlando stadium and his fight for radio relevance. Riky speaks to us a bit his incredible fashion sense and the hit making formula he has cracked. Nasty C shares details of his meteoric rise to fame and the response to his new album Bad Hair. We also talk about the upcoming MTV Africa Music Awards. Enjoy

Africa's finest Hip Hop Podcast is back again with another incredible episode filled with 65 minutes of quality content from across the continent. This week Phil discusses Nasty C's album release and it's implications. He also speaks to Cap City's PDotO who shares an exclusive announcement about his much anticipated and repeatedly delayed debut album Devilz Playground. Phil also catches up with Lil Trix to discuss his career and why the young artist seemed to lose a step after releasing his impressive project Colour Me Bad. We also discuss the 2016 MAMAs, project releases from Davido, Reminisce, E.L, Anatii, Maraza, DJ Sliqe and many more as well as new music.

Africa's finest Hip Hop Podcast is back again with another incredible episode filled with 65 minutes of quality content from across the continent. This week Phil discusses Nasty C's album release and it's implications. He also speaks to Cap City's PDotO who shares an exclusive announcement about his much anticipated and repeatedly delayed debut album Devilz Playground. Phil also catches up with Lil Trix to discuss his career and why the young artist seemed to lose a step after releasing his impressive project Colour Me Bad. We also discuss the 2016 MAMAs, project releases from Davido, Reminisce, E.L, Anatii, Maraza, DJ Sliqe and many more as well as new music.

The African Hip Hop Blog Podcast is back with another episode that was custom made to satiate the hunger of our true Hip Hop head fans. This week Phil speaks to Ghanaian rapper M.anifest for an in conversation focusing on his new 14 track album Nowhere Cool. Phil and M dot chop it up about the creative process behind the album, the production and the overall arc of the lyrics before we play out with a snippet of Hand Dey Go, Hand Dey Come featuring Worlasi Look out for a full review on the album dropping on http://africanhhb.com/

The African Hip Hop Blog Podcast is back with another episode that was custom made to satiate the hunger of our true Hip Hop head fans. This week Phil speaks to Ghanaian rapper M.anifest for an in conversation focusing on his new 14 track album Nowhere Cool. Phil and M dot chop it up about the creative process behind the album, the production and the overall arc of the lyrics before we play out with a snippet of Hand Dey Go, Hand Dey Come featuring Worlasi Look out for a full review on the album dropping on http://africanhhb.com/

The African Hip Hop Blog Podcast is back once again with 60 minutes of some of the best news, music and interviews from the African continent, and this week is a special show. Just know, just know. SPECIAL EPISODE ALERT! (Khaled voice). This week Phil discusses Yung6ix getting shot at, Reminisce’s management situation, the 2016 MTV Awards and The AFRIMAs as well the best content from www.africanhhb.com. He also interviews our #FeatureFridays winner Ayat to discover that he's not that new of an artist after all as well interviewing his personal Hip Hop hero - none other than the African rapper number 1, M.I Abaga. M.I is currently in South Africa preparing for his first major showcase and Phil suppressed his screams long enough to discuss M.I’s plans for new music and collabs as well as his outlook on African Hip Hop.