Stonebwoy: African Artistes Need Investors, Not Big Record Labels

Ghanaian afro-dancehall star Stonebwoy has spoken out against the popular belief that African artistes, especially Nigerians, are performing on global stages mainly because they are signed to major international record labels.

In an interview on Asempa FM on Wednesday, July 16, 2025, Stonebwoy dismissed the idea, stressing that the real key to international success is investment, not necessarily a big record label.

“Every time you just say that because this person is on a record label that is why they are achieving such feats. What is a record label? A record label is not necessarily an investor,” Stonebwoy said.

He explained that many people misunderstand how record label deals actually work. According to him, not all deals provide financial support, and there are different types of agreements depending on the artist and the label.

“Recording labels have different set of agreements. There is licensing agreement that you can license your songs on. Some people have a 360 agreement where the labels are in charge of everything from marketing to everything else so, therefore, they are able to invest their money and everything is coming to them basically,” he explained.

Stonebwoy also pointed out that most of the major record labels are based in the United States and their primary focus isn’t always on African musicians.

He praised Nigerian artistes for their strategic efforts and said many of them have reached global stages through the help of private investors who believe in their talent and support their careers.

“The major labels, most of them are from the outside, America, and they are focused on artists not necessarily African artistes… These our Nigerian counterparts that do the big stuff, they do so many things for themselves, they have independent investors who actually support. It’s not a matter of having a big record label,” he added.