How AI is remixing music and culture in Africa

When South African entrepreneur Gift Lubele released an album partly created with artificial intelligence (AI), he wasn't just experimenting with new technology. The idea, for him, was deeply personal.

Years earlier, he watched a close friend, who was an aspiring rapper, struggle to survive in the industry.

“He had committed about six or seven years to music,” Lubele recalls. “But he didn't have the resources for studio time, mastering, a producer, or distribution. Eventually the frustration became too much.”

That experience shaped Lubele's view of AI in music.

“If AI had existed when he was alive, he wouldn't have gone through those hardships,” he says. “Today, if you have an idea, you can create a song in seconds, almost studio-level quality.”

The rise of AI in music

Across Africa, the promise of cheaper production and greater access to the industry is driving a wave of experimentation with AI-generated music. But the technology also raises challenging questions about creativity and the future of musicians’ livelihoods.

AI is rapidly becoming part of the global music ecosystem. Estimates suggest that musicians incorporating AI into their compositions range from roughly 21 percent to 29 percent, though overall AI adoption across all aspects of the music-making process is far higher.

In Africa's major music hubs, including Lagos, Johannesburg, and Nairobi, artists and producers are increasingly turning to AI-powered tools that can generate beats and melodies.

“Take the likes of DJ Maphorisa (real name Themba Sekowe), he is also now using AI in his creative process,” Lubele said. “He just published a song that he built using AI. Now someone like Maphorisa, he has been in the industry and one could even say he controls the Amapiano wave and for him to see that this thing is a tool, that one can use really just shows how AI should be used.”

Lubele believes that AI could transform Africa's creative industries by leveling the playing field.

He states, “For artists in Africa lacking the funds for studios and producers, the chances of success are minimal. AI eliminates that barrier and levels the playing field.”

A new generation of AI musicians in Africa

One of the most talked-about examples is another South African musician known as Rea Gopane.

Gopane used AI tools to produce a song titled “Suka,” which went viral online and reportedly climbed to the top of South African streaming charts. According to Lubele, the track has garnered millions of streams.

“He had no studio equipment,” Lubele says. “He just used his phone and AI tools. Two months later he told me he had made his first million rand.”

For AI supporters, such stories illustrate how technology can reduce barriers for artists lacking industry connections or funding.

Lubele himself has embraced the approach. His own project involves generating musical ideas with AI and then collaborating with human performers to complete the track.

“You still need the human element,” he explains. “You write the lyrics, you choose the mood, the tempo, the structure. AI helps generate possibilities, but the artist decides what works.”

Fear in the studio

Not everyone in the music industry is convinced.

Many musicians worry that AI could replace parts of the creative workforce.

“There is a whole ecosystem that is afraid,” Lubele acknowledges. “Artists, producers, people who do mastering. They feel like AI might take food from the table.”

These concerns are escalating as generative AI tools gain power. Streaming platforms are already facing an influx of machine-generated songs. 

In 2025, music service Deezer reported that approximately 60,000 AI-created tracks were uploaded daily, making up nearly 39 percent of new music submissions.

For some artists, there is anxiety about their future in the music industry. 

Amanda Khumalo, an up-and-coming singer from Durban, says the rise of AI leaves young musicians uncertain about their future.

“You spend years learning your craft and now producers have the option of typing a prompt and generating a song in seconds,” Khumalo says. “It hasn't really affected me yet but I am worried about how it will affect me in future.”

She worries that audiences may eventually struggle to distinguish between authentic music and AI generated music.

“Music should stem from experience,” she observes. “Most people simply click on songs without realizing they're AI-generated, as they sound so similar to what any contemporary artist would produce.”

A question of culture and authenticity

Beyond jobs, there are concerns that AI could reshape African music in ways that dilute its cultural roots.

Modern AI systems are trained on massive datasets of existing music, but these datasets are often heavily skewed toward Western genres. 

Research suggests over 86 percent of training data used in AI music generation comes from the Global North, leaving many African styles underrepresented.

“Anyone around the world could assemble African-style drums and melodies and produce a track,” says Khumalo. “But does that make it African music?”

For Lubele, addressing that problem was one motivation behind creating an AI platform called Auraa, designed to incorporate African languages and genres into its training data.

“Most AI systems are using about 94 percent Western data,” he says. “African music is barely represented. If we don't feed our own cultural data into these systems, we risk losing it.”

Preserving Africa's musical heritage

Some researchers are taking steps to ensure that the continent's musical traditions survive in the AI era.

At the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits) in Johannesburg, researchers have launched an AI & African Music pilot project. 

The aim of this project is to support groundbreaking musical ideas that harness AI and champion African creativity.

Africa's musical diversity is immense, for example, South Africa alone has 12 official languages, while countries like Nigeria have more than 200 languages, each with unique musical traditions.

“If we don't find a way of taking that data and feeding it into AI,” Lubele says, “we risk that history disappearing entirely.”

Is AI a helpful tool or threat?

For now, the debate over AI in African music remains deeply divided. 

Some artists see it as a creative tool that speeds up production and opens the industry to newcomers, while others fear it could lead to a flood of generic music, overwhelming listeners and undermining human creativity.

Even Lubele acknowledges that the technology could disrupt the industry.

“What we are experiencing now is a revolution,” he says. “And every revolution comes with disruption.” But he believes the solution is not to resist AI, but to shape it. “We shouldn't see AI as an enemy,” he says. “We should see it as a tool that can accelerate creativity.”