African Stars Who Made It to Obama’s 2024 Playlist

Rema and Asake among African artists who made it to Obama’s 2024 playlist

Former president Barack Obama’s taste of good music stretches far beyond the American borders.

His end year list of best songs of 2024 comprises not one but several hits from different parts of the world including Africa.

Rema, Tems, and Tyla are some of the African artists featured by the president on his end year list.

Rema’s single ‘Yayo’ made it to the president’s list as ‘Jump’, Tyla’s collaboration with Gunna and Skillibeng was also featured.

Asake also made it to the list with ‘Active”, his collaboration with Travis Scott.

The Afrobeat stars making it to the list show how far the genre has spread in the recent past.

In the end year listing, the former president also listed his favourite books and movies of the year.

Below is the full list of Obama’s 2024 playlist titled ‘Favourite Music of 2024’.

Obama’s 2023 Playlist

The former president’s 2023 playlist also consisted of African artists like Burna Boy, Davido, Asake, and Olamide.

Burna Boy’s ‘Sittin’ on Top of the World’ made it to the list as collabs; ‘Amapiano’ by Asake and Olamide and  Davido’s and Musa Key’s ‘Unavailable’ also made it to the historic list.

Other notable names that made it to the president’s 2023 list include Megan Thee Stallion with his single “Cobra”. Beyonce and Kendrick Lamar also made it with their collaboration, “America Has a Problem”.

Obama’s listing of his favourite music yearly dates back to 2015 when he was still president. Ever since, he has always made his playlist public every year.

Afrobeat

Afrobeat is a new music genre emanating from Africa and dominated by Nigerians. It primarily originated from west Africa in the early 2000s and has since spread to other parts of the world.

Nigerian artists like Burna Boy, Davido, Asake and Rema have made a name for themselves with their constant hits in this music category.

Rema and Asake who have now featured in the president’s playlist of the year have cemented their portfolio as global Afrobeat icons this year.

Asake fuses traditional African beats with modern sounds and this makes him unavoidable in the music industry.

With this trend, African music is yet to reach even greater heights as more artists continue to push themselves to gain attention of the global audience.

Obama’s mention of the African names has without a doubt pushed their numbers high in terms of streams and views.

The sky’s the limit.