BEATS, BUSINESS AND A BRIDGE TO AFRICA

SINCE LAUNCHING IN 2012, RECORD LABEL LVRN (LOVE RENAISSANCE) HAS GONE FROM A SMALL BOUTIQUE IN ATLANTA, TO A LABEL THAT REPRESENTS ARTISTS GLOBALLY. FURTHER EXPANDING ON THE AFRICAN CONTINENT, AND SECURING INVESTMENTS, CEO AND CO-FOUNDER TUNDE BALOGUN SAYS IT'S NOW NOT JUST A BUSINESS BUT A CULTURAL MISSION.

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Tunde Balogun grew up between two worlds and it’s this cultural duality that now drives his mission: to amplify African music globally.

“The culture wasn’t always around me growing up, but being immersed in both American and Nigerian cultures allowed me to see both sides of the world. That experience has always helped me keep an open mind when it comes to music and culture, as they've evolved,” Balogun, the CEO and Co-Founder of LVRN (Love Renaissance), says in an interview with FORBES AFRICA.

From a young age, Balogun knew and understood the power that African music has and its potential to be a global sensation. Born to Nigerian parents in the United States (U.S.), he says he was always drawn to music from the continent.

“My parents always played African music,” Balogun explains. “As I grew into an executive and eventually started my own company, I gained the power to invest in entrepreneurs and talent. It felt only right for us to go back home, especially since our next focus was global expansion.”

LVRN says its roster reflects a deliberate embrace of Africa's genre-bending creativity and cultural reach, and includes Nigeria's first DJ to perform at music and arts festival, Coachella, SXSW, and Glastonbury, Oluseye Desmond Sodamola, professionally known as SPINALL.

Another notable name is Nigerian-British Grammy-nominated producer Michael Ovie Hunter (ThisizLondon), who is behind singles such as Rema's Calm Down, and, in the Amapiano space, South Africa's all-female Amapiano DJ duo Tarryn Reid and Clairise Hefke (TxC).

Balogun says that this expansion is strategic, however, it is also just a natural evolution of what the brand has always been about, adding, “it’s just that we have a focus and intention on it right now”.