Mo Abudu, the founder of EbonyLife Group, has acquired a property on Wandsworth Road in London, laying the foundation for EbonyLife Place London, a cultural hub set to open in the fourth quarter of 2025. This ambitious project promises to spotlight African film, theatre, music, food, art, and fashion, cementing Nigeria’s growing influence on the global stage.
From the Afrobeats boom to Nollywood’s cinematic reach and the rising popularity of Nigerian cuisine and fashion, the country’s creative exports are captivating international audiences like never before.
The launch of EbonyLife Place London comes at a pivotal moment for Nigerian culture. Spotify reports reveal Afrobeats as the world’s fastest-growing genre in 2024, with Nigerian artists discovered 1 billion times globally, while Nollywood films topped Netflix charts with millions of views.
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Meanwhile, Nigerian food is winning over palates in the UK and beyond, and designers are dressing global icons with vibrant fabrics like Aso-Oke. Abudu’s latest venture is poised to harness this momentum, offering a platform for African creatives to shine and connect with the world.
Nigerian Music
Nigerian music, specifically Afrobeats, is becoming not just a new sound for international audiences but also a global phenomenon.
According to Spotify’s Loud & Clear report, Nigeria’s music exports grew by 49 percent over the past three years due to the Afrobeats boom. Global listeners spend an average of over 1.1 million hours streaming Nigerian artists, with users creating approximately 250 million playlists featuring Nigerian artists worldwide.
Jocelyne Muhutu-Remy, managing director for Spotify Africa, said that data showed that Afrobeats was the fastest-growing genre in the world in 2024. She pointed to markets like France and the Netherlands, where Nigerian music is gaining traction. This led to Nigerian artists being discovered 1 billion times worldwide on the platform in 2024. She also said that the UK and US markets would become major hubs for Nigerian music in the coming years.
“Discovery is an essential feature of streaming, and Spotify is particularly good at helping artists be discovered,” Muhutu-Remy said. “It means that if you’re in Oslo, in Tokyo, or wherever, you can discover or listen to a Nigerian artist for the first time. This is the mainstreaming and normalising of our sounds in people’s lives worldwide.”
Nigerian Film
Nollywood’s international growth is driven by distribution companies like FilmOne and Nile Entertainment, which have expanded the reach of Nigerian films to cinemas in the UK and beyond. For instance, FilmOne distributed ‘A Tribe Called Judah’ in Nigeria and supported its UK release, while Nile Entertainment handled ‘Wives on Strike: The Uprising’ for theaters in the UK, US, Ireland, and Canada in October 2024 and ‘Everybody Loves Jenifa’ in December that same year.
Despite Netflix and Amazon stepping back from funding Nollywood originals, they continue to license films for their platforms. Recent examples include ‘Ada Omo Daddy’ (2023),‘House of Gaa’ (2024), ‘Seven Doors’ (2024) ‘Lisabi’ amongst other films all both available on Netflix, alongside ‘The Black Book’ (2023), which topped Netflix’s global charts with over 20 million views, significantly boosting Nollywood’s international visibility.
Collaborations with global figures like Idris Elba, who directed “Dust to Dreams” starring Seal and Nse Ikpe-Etim, showcase Nollywood’s integration with Hollywood. Produced by Mo Abudu, this film, set for release, highlights cross-cultural storytelling. Additionally, Mo Abudu’s EbonyLife Place in London, set to open in Q4 2025, will be a hub for African film, theatre, music, and fashion, enhancing Nigerian creative culture’s global presence.
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Nigerian Food
Nigerian food is gaining traction globally, particularly in the UK, where restaurants like Tasty African Food, with its 28th branch in Sittingborne, Kent, are thriving. Supermarkets like Sainsbury’s are also offering ready-made Nigerian dishes, indicating a broadening appeal.
This trend is supported by numerous Nigerian and African grocery stores in the UK, providing ingredients for traditional meals, catering to both the diaspora and curious locals.
Social media is a key driver, with influencers and content creators sharing cooking videos and taste tests. For example, an X post from Crazy Korean Cooking in early March 2025 showed Korean parents trying Nigerian dishes like Egusi Soup, Pound Yam, Suya, Jollof Rice, Fried Rice, Akara, and Pepper soup, gaining significant attention.
Similarly, YouTube videos from last year, such as “Mexican Dads Try Nigerian Food for the First Time!” published on May 29, 2024, have amassed millions of impressions, introducing global audiences to Nigerian cuisine.
EbonyLife Place in London will likely include Nigerian food offerings, potentially featuring a restaurant like Turaka, known from its Lagos location, further promoting cultural exchange.
