The TikTok effect: African artistes are now topping global charts – Techpoint Africa

Two smartphones rest on a beige blanket; one displays the TikTok logo, while the other shows a TikTok user profile, highlighting how the TikTok effect is helping African artistes rise on global charts. A small potted plant is in the background.

Ten years after its initial release, Nigerian singer Skales’ 2015 hit song “Shake Body” has trended all over social media, garnering over 200,000 streams in just ten hours. What triggered this? A TikTok video of popular footballer Lamine Yamal dancing to it.

Sometime in 2024, the song “Gwo Gwo Ngwo” also became a hit on social media after Nigerian comedian, Brain Jotter filmed a hilarious video of himself dancing to it and shared it on TikTok.

What many people didn’t realise was that the song wasn’t new. It was an old…