Ghanian singer, Kofee Bean emerges Spotify’s second “Fresh Finds Africa” artiste

Spotify, an online music streaming platform, has announced independent Ghanaian singer and songwriter, Kofee Bean as its second “Fresh Finds Africa” artiste.

Phiona Okumu, Spotify’s head of music for Sub-Saharan Africa, disclosed this in a statement on Friday in Lagos.

Okumu said that the Spotify’s Fresh Finds Africa programme was launched in March, with the focus of giving independent artistes the tools they needed to grow their audiences and expose them to new audiences.

She said that Patience Naa Oyo Titus-Glover, also known as Kofee Bean, was on a mission to take her place within the alternative music space on the continent and in the diaspora.

According to her, the artiste began singing and writing songs and poetry at the age of seven before becoming a singer with a Ghanaian band called Made Africa and she subsequently formed her own live band, which went on to perform at various events.

Okumu said haven decided to pursue her dreams as a full-time artiste and fueled by the desire to tell stories through her music, Kofee Bean launched her debut track in 2021, titled, “Breathing”, featuring rapper Kiddblack, which caught the ear of Spotify’s editors.

“We are continuously on the lookout for promising artistes under the different hubs we have at Spotify and we want to showcase and offer them social support to grow their music careers.

“Fresh Finds artistes also get one-on-one training on the best practices for using the Spotify platform and in-app.

“Globally, the performance of Fresh Finds artistes has been astonishing, since its global launch in 2016, Fresh Finds has playlisted over 25,000 artistes, with their average monthly listeners increasing by 108 per cent within a month of their songs being included in the playlists.

“This is the type of growth that Fresh Finds Africa artistes like Kofee Bean can expect,” she said.

According to Okumu, the artiste draws her inspiration from formiddable female artistes like Erykah Badu, Jill Scott, Sade, and Aṣa.

She said that the artiste creates her music using several elements from the different genres she grew up with, such as Neo-Soul and R&B.

In her response, Kofee Bean said, “I feel honoured and grateful to be viewed in such a light by Spotify

“Even at the beginning of my career, and it is definitely a confidence booster in my sound and my artistry, and for people who love and are creating this sound as well,” she said.

Fresh Finds Africa is a monthly programme, with a new artiste selected every month by the Spotify music team, and forms part of Spotify’s continued commitment to support the African music industry, through initiatives such as EQUAL and Radar.