The New Silk Road of Sound: Emerging Markets vs. the Algorithm

In Lagos, the bass from a street party reverberates through storefront shutters as crowds fill the streets, fully engaged in the music. Meanwhile, in Jakarta, warehouse shows extend beyond curfew, with guitars resonating against the backdrop of passing scooters. Such scenes seldom trend on Western platforms, yet their significance is undiminished. A new Silk Road of sound is emerging, channeling music through regional circuits and human networks in emerging markets that operate parallel to, rather than subordinate to, Western digital systems.

This development represents a new trajectory for globalization.

For decades, the global music economy operated as a one-way export system, with artists from the Global South entering Western labels, platforms, and validation pipelines. This model is now fragmenting. As streaming increases internet access across Africa and Southeast Asia, growth is shifting away from the United States and Europe toward younger, developing markets and culturally confident societies. A growing reluctance to conform to algorithmic preferences has facilitated greater success in these regions.

Localized Power Hubs

Lagos and Jakarta exemplify the evolving dynamics of globalization in music. Both cities maintain strong connections to global platforms, yet retain autonomy over their own cultural values.

In Lagos, local proximity remains a key determinant of influence. Studios operate continuously, supported by extensive networks of producers, writers, stylists, DJs, and managers who navigate various neighborhoods and scenes. Songs achieve popularity through physical venues such as clubs, parties, and radio before gaining digital circulation. When these songs reach international audiences, they retain their original context and authenticity.

Importantly, artists in Lagos do not depend on Western markets for validation. Regional touring within West Africa, pan-African streaming expansion, and direct-to-fan monetization offer diverse revenue streams. Global exposure serves as a supplementary benefit rather than a necessity. This approach inverts the traditional globalization model, in which external forces often dictate cultural values.

Jakarta’s music ecosystem operates in a manner similar to that of other cities, albeit with distinct cultural dynamics. The city serves as a hub for genres such as punk, dangdut, metal, hip-hop, and experimental pop, indicating a market capable of supporting significant internal diversity. DIY venues, community spaces, and college radio form an alternative infrastructure that enables local scenes to flourish independently of immediate international recognition.

In this context, globalization facilitates expansion without necessitating cultural homogenization. Artists can maintain local roots while engaging with the global market according to their own priorities.

Algorithms and the Geography of Growth

Streaming platforms present globalization as a borderless phenomenon, yet their underlying incentives are not evenly distributed. Algorithms tend to favor sounds that conform to dominant consumption patterns, which are frequently established in Western markets. This results in a structural bias toward familiarity and rapid dissemination, prioritizing viral moments over sustained artistic development.term development.

Emerging markets are resisting algorithmic dominance through practice rather than explicit ideology. When growth is driven by local live performances, regional tours, and community-based distribution, algorithms serve a supplementary rather than decisive role. Artists are not compelled to alter their sound for discoverability if a core audience is already established. This direct engagement with listeners contributes to the success of the new Silk Road of sound. Smaller communities facilitate rapid innovation by exchanging ideas, fostering a distinctive contemporary creative renaissance.

A further characteristic of community-centric markets, in contrast to globally oriented ones, is the reduced pressure to cater to the attention economy. Creators in these environments already generate significant energy and enthusiasm, eliminating the need to conform to external expectations of modernity.

This represents a significant transformation within the expanding music market. As Africa and Southeast Asia become primary drivers of subscriber growth, platforms are compelled to adapt to local listening preferences rather than imposing a uniform global model. The outcome is a more fragmented but culturally resilient form of globalization, characterized by the coexistence of multiple centers of influence.

The Sovereign Wealth Shift

The financial dimension of globalization is also undergoing change. Investments from sovereign wealth funds, development banks, and regional family offices are increasingly directed toward creative infrastructure in emerging markets. In contrast to Western catalog acquisition strategies that frequently emphasize short-term returns, this capital is oriented toward long-term ecosystem development.

Studios, rehearsal spaces, educational initiatives, and locally owned labels benefit from support that does not necessitate immediate cultural compromise or loss of ownership. Artists maintain creative control, labels can invest with a long-term perspective, and local scenes develop depth rather than prioritizing global virality.

This approach diverges from extractive models of globalization, in which value generated locally was monetized externally. In Lagos and Jakarta, value circulates initially within regional markets, thereby strengthening domestic industries prior to global expansion.

Meet the Indie Leaders of Cultural Power

Lagos: Aniko

On an energetic night, the crowd fills a tent-like venue in Lagos to mark Group Therapy’s first anniversary, and Aniko moves through the space less like a headliner and more like a host. She began taking DJing seriously during lockdown, initially playing Afrobeats, indie, and alternative music before pivoting toward house. “That’s where I felt the most comfortable,” she says in a conversation with TheFace. In the Afrobeats capital of the world, the decision to center electronic music wasn’t strategic but was a provingly worthwhile risk.

This willingness to take risks characterizes Aniko’s leadership. As the founder of the monthly event Group Therapy, she has established an independent ecosystem for Lagos’ electronic music community, emphasizing trust, consistency, and local ownership rather than scale. “I had to accept that people were not going to like this,” she explains. “But I just had to own my sound and move forward with it.” By prioritizing community over visibility, Aniko exemplifies a new model of independent leadership in emerging markets, where cultural power derives from cultivating robust local scenes capable of self-directed export.

Jakarta: Goodnight Electric

Goodnight Electric has become a longstanding indie institution in Jakarta, setting itself apart from more transient bands. Founded in 2004 as a solo project by Henry Foundation, the group emerged from an underground scene that had been developing since the early 1990s, influenced by DIY recording, college radio, and a generation exposed to alternative and Britpop through MTV Indonesia. Drawing on influences such as Depeche Mode, Kraftwerk, The Cure, and Belle and Sebastian, Goodnight Electric blended new wave, indie pop, and electronic minimalism to create a sound that is both globally informed and rooted in Jakarta’s cultural context. Their early adoption of synthesizers and sequencers was motivated by a desire to expand Indonesian pop music, rather than to follow prevailing trends.

This long-term perspective distinguishes Goodnight Electric as leaders within the indie scene rather than as nostalgia acts. Following a three-year hiatus, the group returned by expanding their archival work rather than pursuing contemporary trends. They released “The Electronic Renaissance” and organized a music-archives exhibition in Jakarta, thereby reaffirming their commitment to independent production. The addition of new members and ongoing experimentation led to a darker, more ambient sound, culminating in the 2020 album “Misteria,” which embraced dream pop and new wave while maintaining a distinct identity. In the context of a growing global music market, Goodnight Electric demonstrates cultural leadership grounded in continuity, collective memory, and scene development.

A Different Future for Global Music

The experiences of Lagos and Jakarta indicate that the global music market no longer operates as a hierarchical pyramid dominated by the West. Instead, it functions as a network, with growth driven by regions that possess their own audiences, capital, and cultural authority. While algorithms continue to play a role, they are no longer the sole determinants of success.

As Western markets experience saturation and diminishing returns, emerging markets offer a model for sustainable growth, where globalization emphasizes connection rather than convergence. Music circulates internationally while retaining its integrity and distinctiveness.