Sony Music Africa, partners launch expanded ‘Rising Star Challenge’ competition

Culture Management Group, the parent company of Afrochella, and media streaming service Audiomack, have today announced a new partnership with global music company Sony Music Africa, to expand the fagship ‘Rising Star Challenge’ competition for unsigned and emerging artists in Africa.

Up to 10 prize winners chosen from a shortlist of 25 unsigned and emerging artists who enter the competition will beneft from global distribution deals from Sony Music Africa, bringing their music to the world. Five of these prize winners will also be chosen to perform on Afrochella’s Rising Star Stage alongside the festival’s powerhouse headliners and electric musical line-up on December 29th, 2022.

One artist from the Rising Star Challenge will be selected for the Grand Prize: an exclusive recording agreement with Sony Music Africa for a single release. In addition, the Grand Prize winner will receive:

● Global distribution for their new single

● Marketing support such as a music video and more

● Free access to Afrochella’s recording studio

● Mentoring and training from industry executives and leading musicians and producers

● The opportunity to perform live at Afrochella.

To enter, artists upload an original song to Audiomack and create an Instagram Reel that includes an introduction about the artist, their approach to music and music-making process, and what they want their potential audience to know about their style of music.

“We’re thrilled to partner with Sony Music Africa to help expand our “Rising Star Challenge” and to further catapult the growth of Africa’s up and coming talent.” says Abdul Karim Abdullah, CEO & Co-Founder of Afrochella. “With the strong backing of Sony Music, we now have the exciting opportunity to make an artist’s dreams come to life by providing them with a distribution deal and sustainable resources to help jumpstart their musical career.”

“It’s exciting when we get an opportunity to work with partners who are at the forefront of music culture in Africa, and working with Afrochella to surface exciting new talent fts right into our arc,” added Sean Watson, Managing Director, Sony Music Africa. “Abdul and his team are passionate about being closely connected to the creativity in their environment and so are we at Sony Music Africa. We are excited to partner on the “Rising Star Challenge” to provide a platform for the best new artists we can fnd together.”

The “Rising Star Challenge” is now underway, and winners will be chosen during the Afrochella Festival. For more information on the Afrochella Rising Star challenge, please visit and for the latest events and news on Afrochella, please visit and follow @afrochella on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram for more details.