Four Kenyan podcasts—Mantalk.ke, The Messy Inbetween, The Sandwich and Nipe Story—are among 13 podcasts in Africa set to benefit from Spotify’s $100,000 (Ksh12 million) funding.
Spotify, the Swedish audio streaming platform, has invested $100,000 into a new Africa Podcast Fund programme aimed at supporting podcasters in the continent to amplify their stories.
“Throughout its launch across Africa, Spotify has demonstrated its commitment to bolstering the careers of African creators through on- and off-platform support programmes. In line with this, the company has announced a first-of-its-kind podcast initiative on the continent, the Africa Podcast Fund. The $100,000 fund aims to bolster the careers of these podcast creators through financial grants, workshops and networking opportunities.” Spotify said in a statement.
The Fund is offered to select creators from African countries where the biggest podcast listenership is, and these include South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya and Ghana.
The grant also includes a Cameroonian podcast with large listenership both in France and in Francophone African countries, such as Cote d’Ivoire.
The winning podcasts are recorded in a range of languages including Pidgin, English, French, Sheng, Ga, and Twi.
The funding will be administered by Africa Podfest, a Kenyan-based podcast supporting platform focused on inspiring and elevating African podcasters by building a sustainable and inclusive podcasting industry across Africa.
“Africa Podfest is excited about the development of podcasting in Africa particularly because the medium allows underrepresented African voices to tell the story of Africa,” noted Melissa Mbugua, Co-Director at Africa Podfest.
Mantalke.Ke hosted by Kenyan creators Eli Mwenda and Oscar Koome, recognises the need for conversations led by men on issues such as toxic masculinity, fatherhood, feminism, dating, and self-care. The two hosts strive to have uncomfortable conversations, even if that means putting themselves on the spot.
Nipe Story podcast is hosted and narrated by Kenyan writer, journalist, and queer activist Kevin Mwachiro. The podcast gives a voice to written African short stories. Mwachiro provides a platform for African writers to have their short stories heard.
The Messy Inbetween is hosted by Murugi Munyi and Lydia Mukami, where the duo cover topics on love, money, work and life. The podcast provides a safe space for women to discuss their experiences candidly.
The Sandwich , the podcast with the most listeners in Kenya with an audience of over 200,000, is hosted by four funny creatives Joan, Kibz, Nyamita and Owen who speak their minds on different social aspects of life happening around them. The podcast is delivered in a mix of English, Kiswahili, and Sheng.
Apart from the four podcasts from Kenya, four from South Africa, three from Nigeria, and one each from Ghana and Cameroon will also benefit from the funding.
The 13 African podcasts were selected for the funding based on the fact that they are run by independent emerging podcasters with growing audiences. The funding has a focus on supporting podcasts that showcase a range of voices in terms of varying formats, gender, language and content.
