For years, conversations about Africa’s creative industry have centred on discovering the next Burna Boy, Diamond Platnumz or Tems. But entrepreneur Julius Kyazze believes the continent is asking the wrong question.
According to the Swangz Avenue co-founder, Africa’s creative sector is not suffering from a shortage of talented artists. Instead, he argues, it lacks the business ecosystem needed to turn talent into long-term careers and profitable enterprises.
“We do not have a lack of talent. We have a lack of enough people to build the business and the structures behind that talent,” Kyazze said during a recent interview reflecting on his journey in the creative industry.
His remarks come at a time when Africa’s entertainment industry is enjoying unprecedented global attention. Afrobeats continues to dominate international charts, African films are reaching global streaming platforms, and creators are increasingly finding audiences far beyond the continent.
Yet despite that momentum, Kyazze believes many artists still struggle because the industry’s support systems remain underdeveloped.
He argues that while attention is often placed on performers, far less investment goes into talent managers, promoters, marketers, event producers, distributors and other professionals whose work determines whether creative careers survive beyond a hit song or viral moment.
For Kyazze, the solution lies in building institutions rather than relying solely on individual stars.
That thinking inspired the formation of Live54+, a pan-African creative company bringing together businesses in live entertainment, media, talent management, content production and marketing under one umbrella.
He describes the venture as an attempt to create an ecosystem where creatives can easily collaborate, tour and build sustainable careers across different African markets.
“Our ambition is to build an ecosystem where creatives can tour, collaborate and grow across Africa through strong local institutions and partnerships,” he said.
Kyazze’s philosophy has been shaped by his own unconventional journey.
Before becoming one of East Africa’s best-known entertainment executives, he was a dancer, an experience he says introduced him to teamwork, discipline and the commercial possibilities within the creative arts.
Later, while working in Kenya, he encountered a more structured entertainment industry, an experience that changed the way he viewed creativity.
Instead of seeing music and entertainment as passion projects, he began viewing them as businesses capable of generating employment and long-term economic value.
That mindset would later influence the growth of Swangz Avenue from a recording studio into one of Uganda’s most recognised entertainment companies.
Even with those achievements, Kyazze believes Africa’s biggest opportunity still lies ahead.
He envisions an industry where creatives no longer feel compelled to relocate overseas in search of opportunity, but instead find thriving careers within Africa through stronger institutions, regional partnerships and professional management.
Beyond producing chart-topping artists, he says, the continent should focus on building companies that can employ thousands of people behind the scenes while ensuring African stories remain in African hands.
For Kyazze, the future of the continent’s creative economy will not be determined by the next superstar alone.
It will be determined by whether Africa can build businesses strong enough to sustain thousands of careers long after the applause fades.
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