Afrobeats Intelligence, the acclaimed podcast created and hosted by Nigerian music journalist Joey Akan, has announced a landmark partnership with OkayAfrica, one of the world’s leading platforms dedicated to African culture. The deal is a major investment in Nigeria’s creative media scene and a rare moment where a homegrown African voice is given the tools to expand globally without compromising its identity.

The partnership, which spans four seasons and 48 episodes, brings together two forces with a shared mission: to tell African stories with depth, honesty, and cultural nuance. Afrobeats Intelligence, now in its fourth season, began as a humble newsletter. Joey Akan built the show from the ground up, often recording interviews out of his car in the early days. Over time, it has become a vital space for conversations around African music, culture, and the infrastructure gaps that still hinder the continent’s creative growth.

OkayAfrica, celebrating its 15th anniversary this year, has long sought ways to deepen its roots within African communities while bridging the continent and its diaspora. Backed by its parent company Areya Media, the partnership with Afrobeats Intelligence is both a creative alignment and a bold financial commitment to local talent.

“When OkayAfrica came knocking, it didn’t feel like another brand looking to slap a logo on culture,” says Akan. “It felt like alignment. They saw the vision, respected the work, and didn’t try to polish the rough edges that make Afrobeats Intelligence what it is.”

This partnership transcends business objectives, honoring, elevating, and expanding Joey’s mission to tell African stories across all facets of culture and society, while supporting OkayAfrica’s commitment to leveraging distinctive storytelling to bridge cultures and challenge stereotypes.

OkayAfrica CEO Isha Sesay shared, “Bringing Joey into the OkayAfrica fold was a no-brainer to me. He is a singular talent, that rare journalist-interviewer who asks not only incredibly insightful questions, but is able to elicit surprising, wonderfully deep and meaningful responses from his guests. Every time I watch him, I am blown away, and I find it a real treat.”

This partnership was brought to life through a dedicated team of collaborators, including entertainment attorney Oyinkansola “Foza Fawehinmi, who represented Afrobeats Intelligence, and Úrú Collective, which manages production in Nigeria.

The show’s success speaks for itself. The partnership, more than a year and a half in the making, has already yielded strong results. Seven episodes from season four have been released, with the Timaya and Bella Shmurda episodes each surpassing 230,000 views.

The Timaya interview alone reached 29,000 views within five days of release. In total, the season has amassed nearly 1 million views.

The podcast continues to release new episodes every Friday on major streaming platforms and OkayAfrica’s YouTube channel.

Together, OkayAfrica and Afrobeats Intelligence are proving what’s possible when African media is given not just a platform, but true support.