AFRICA (CelebrityAccess) – Universal Music Group (UMG) has today (May 2) announced the signing of Nigerian singer-songwriter Tiwa Savage.
Under the terms of the exclusive global deal, Savage’s future music for UMG will be executive produced by Efe Ogbeni of Regime Music Societe and VA PR founder Vannessa Amadi-Ogbonna, and will be released by the major in over 60 countries worldwide.
Having started her career as a backup singer for artists such as Mary J. Blige and George Michael, Savage, who was born in Lagos, Nigeria, is now one of Afrobeat’s biggest stars. Several of her recent singles, including “Mr Lova Lova” ft. Duncan Mighty and “Tiwa’s Vibe,” have hit No. 1 on charts across Africa.
In 2018, the singer-songwriter, philanthropist, entrepreneur and fashion icon was crowned Best African Act by the MTV European Music Awards, making history as the first female to win the accolade. That same year, she also became the first African female to sell out London’s IndigO2, and was handpicked by Coldplay lead singer Chris Martin to perform at the Global Citizen Festival in Johannesburg. She also performed at Jay-Z’s Made in America Festival in Philadelphia in 2017.
Throughout her career, Savage has been active in numerous philanthropic endeavors, supporting various youth engagement organizations and breast cancer screening projects across Nigeria.
She was also the first African female to represent Pepsi as an ambassador and represents leading global brands including Nike, MegaGrowth Hair, MTN and Star Beer.
“We are looking forward to partnering with Tiwa and her team to help her music reach new audiences around the world,” added Adam Granite, executive VP market development at Universal Music Group. “As one of Africa’s most successful, influential and dynamic singer-songwriters, Tiwa has truly global ambitions and UMG is committed to help her in achieving them.”
Savage is slated to play a number of international music festivals this summer, including the U.K.’s Wireless Festival, Afropunk in Paris and the Oh My! Festival in Amsterdam. She has released two studio albums and an EP and is currently working on her next album.
UMG has been ramping up its presence in Africa over the last 12 months.
The label became the first major to license Africa’s biggest streaming platform, Boomplay in November 2018 and the first to license Nigeria-based music streaming service uduX last month. In March of last year UMG acquired a majority stake in leading Kenyan label, AI Records.
UMG also recently launched a new office under the Universal Music Nigeria brand in Lagos.
