The Informal Bank That Built Afrobeats
A Duomachina Cultural Exhibition
International capital arrived in Nigeria in 2019 and bought a proof of concept that had been running for twenty years. There was no pitch deck behind Afrobeats — only savings pots, family money, marketer advances and a Lagos market that never wrote anything down.
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Curated selections from across the Duomachina ecosystem, chosen for their cultural significance.
Analysis
The Informal Bank That Built Afrobeats
International capital arrived in Nigeria in 2019 and bought a proof of concept that had been running for twenty years. There was no pitch deck behind Afrobeats — only savings pots, family money, marketer advances and a Lagos market that never wrote anything down.
Analysis
Africa Did Not Start Making Games in the Smartphone Era
Africa's game industry did not begin with the smartphone. A South African studio shipped a number-one game in 1996 and an Xbox title in 2002 — then the archive that should have kept them was never built. The smartphone era took the credit.
Analysis
How Nigerian Music Escaped Lagos
Before streaming, a Lagos record had to leave Lagos twice — once to reach the rest of Nigeria, then to reach Africa. Both escapes were built by traders, DJs and market operators who never called it an industry. The route went global, not the talent.
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