Shaping the African Diaspora’s Story: Using New Media-Tech to Discover and Champion Young African Voices All Over the World with Claude Grunitzky

[00:00:00] You're listening to the Unlocking Africa podcast. My magazine Trace, which I launched when I was in my early 20s, I started in London and then moved to New York, and started doing more and more work on the African continent.

[00:00:13] One of the significant things that I've done throughout my professional career, which has been mostly around media and technology and now venture capital, is really focus on the potential of Africans. These young Africans will create things that will be beneficial to the entire world.

[00:00:30] There's nothing like being on the ground, leading workshops with students and young entrepreneurs so that they can create their own ventures, because you can't be what you cannot see. Stay tuned as we bring you inspiring people who are unlocking Africa's economic potential.

[00:00:47] You're listening to the Unlocking Africa podcast with your host, Terser Adamu. Welcome to the Unlocking Africa podcast, where we find amazing people who are doing amazing things to unlock Africa's economic potential. Today we have a special guest. We have Claude Grunitzky,

[00:01:09] who is CEO and managing partner of the Equity Alliance, which is a fund that invests in funds founded and or managed by diverse investors. Also chairman and editor-in-chief of True Africa, which is the media tech platform for the next thinking on culture, music, sport

[00:01:31] and business in Africa and the diaspora. Welcome, welcome, welcome to the podcast Claude. How are you? Great to be with you Terser. I'm so happy to be able to dive in and talk about Africa, the continent where I was born. Fantastic. And you're currently in Africa right now.

[00:01:48] I'm currently in Togo right now. And I'm in Lome Togo and tomorrow morning I'm going to Accra in Ghana. I'm jealous. I'm very, very, very jealous. Interestingly, this is actually the first time I've had a fellow African say business podcaster on the podcast.

[00:02:10] So I'm looking forward to this interesting conversation and see where the conversation takes us. I hope, yeah, we don't have too much background noise because you know how bustling these African metropolises can be. So I'm trying to be in a quiet place but there's always some chicken somewhere

[00:02:25] or someone making noise. You took the word right out of my mouth. I was going to say, I can't hear any traffic or any animals. So it must be somewhere quite secluded, which is great for, I guess, for the audience. But before we dive deep into the conversation,

[00:02:41] I know I've introduced you, but if you could introduce yourself and just tell us a bit more about Claude Gronitzky. Well, I'm from Lomé. As I said, I was born in Togo and I was raised in Togo, but then I ended up growing up in Togo

[00:02:57] and then in Paris and I lived in London and I've been living in New York for the past 25 years. But one of the significant things that I've done throughout my professional career, which has been mostly around media and technology and now venture capital is really focused

[00:03:11] on the African continent and the potential of Africans. And I've spent pretty much my entire adult life bringing black sensibilities together by trying to bridge the gap between Africans on the continent and Afro descendants living in the diaspora. So that means I spend a lot of time

[00:03:31] documenting black Britain, black France, African-American culture, Afro-Brazilians, Afro-Caribbeans. And throughout my journey as a media entrepreneur and long-time journalist, I really try to shift the focus and the center of gravity back to the African continent because I find that this world we're living in

[00:03:52] is gonna need more of what Africans bring to the world. Amazing, so you touched on some very key points there obviously in terms of your personal background from Togo, you've lived around Africa, Europe and in the US for the last 25 years.

[00:04:08] And also, I guess your passion for capturing Africa from a media perspective and also the work you do in venture capital. So I was wondering if we could touch on that for a minute in terms of your work at Equity Alliance. What was the inspiration behind that organization

[00:04:27] and what is the primary goals in terms of what you hope to achieve? The work that I'm doing at the Equity Alliance is really the work of an investor, of a venture capitalist as I mentioned earlier. So my team and I, we invest in venture capital funds

[00:04:43] and also in early stage startups that are run by women or people of color. So many African Americans get funding from us and the way that we do it is we raise money from very big institutions and foundations and high net worth individuals

[00:05:01] who in an asset management model, they basically invest in our funds so that we can invest in others and we're looking to help to democratize access to capital while generating superior returns for those investors. And so that has a really specific kind of racial

[00:05:20] and gender lens to it. But the work that I do in parallel with True Africa, which is really the venture that I set up after I sold my previous media venture Trace is very much looking to champion young African voices all over the world, as I said,

[00:05:40] not just on the African continent, but also looking at the Afro diaspora and championing it by showing the innovation and the creativity and the business opportunities that are emerging in the African countries in which I operate and also in which I have relationships

[00:05:58] and also we have networks of correspondents and journalists pretty much in each of the 55 countries and the key there is to tell a new story around what Africa can become with human capital and also financial capital. So from venture capital to media and tech,

[00:06:17] what would you say is the crossover? Is there a crossover at all? Well, initially I made my name and my career with a real specific focus on media and media focused on black culture, global African culture. And that's what I knew,

[00:06:35] that's what I did starting with my magazine Trace, which I launched when I was in my early 20s. I started in London and then moved to New York and started doing more and more work on the African continent. But the key for me initially was just helping

[00:06:50] to change the narrative around Africa. I wanted to tell a different story about what Africa was becoming and what black culture was bringing to the world. I very much initially focused on hip hop culture as it was going mainstream and just kind of documenting youth culture

[00:07:06] and popular culture, entertainment and movements that would help to change the perception of Africans and black people in general. As I became, I guess more successful and better known as an entrepreneur, I realized that it was a time to pay it forward by also providing funding.

[00:07:26] Changing the narrative is not enough. It's really important to help to fund new ventures and help to create new enterprises that are really coming from homegrown environments on the African continent and elsewhere. So there is an overlap, it's not a direct overlap,

[00:07:43] but I believe that the way that we're ultimately gonna help to truly change the narrative is by creating success stories and helping to nurture business communities that are driven by ambitious entrepreneurs on the African continent. And that's really why I focused

[00:08:01] not just on true Africa, but also on equity alliance because it's really important to provide capital, as I said. So as you said, there is an overlap. So how would you go about balancing the roles between the media ventures and the venture capital?

[00:08:17] I find that it's all part of the same journey. And so my day job, if I'm gonna look at it that way is to run the equity alliance because it's a much bigger fund. Our fund one was $28 million. We're raising a $50 million fund too.

[00:08:33] And we've already deployed capital into nearly three dozen startups and venture capital funds. So we're up and running and we're growing and we're growing fast and we're really happy with that growth. And so that's my day job. But what I also do is spend a lot of time

[00:08:51] on the Limitless Africa podcast, which is the main project of True Africa, my media company, which I launched in 2015. And Limitless Africa is really important because it comes out every Monday with a 15 minute episode. And also every Thursday we release an extended interview.

[00:09:11] And the key there is to let Africans have their say. I'm the host and I talk to guests from all over the continent about the issues that matter to Africans. And the way that I bring in my equity alliance network and social capital is I sometimes invite people

[00:09:29] who are business leaders or entrepreneurs that are just emerging that we identified via the equity alliance network. And then we give them a platform via the Limitless Africa podcast. So that overlap is really important to me. And I feel like they both dovetail

[00:09:47] into the same strategy of helping to champion young African voices and business opportunities all over the world. I agree. So if we look specifically at the media ventures, what challenges would you say you're trying to solve via True Africa? Well, True Africa produces the Limitless Africa podcast

[00:10:06] but we also produce feature documentaries, 90 minute documentaries. We also produce videos and articles. But main thing we wanna focus on is shining a light on some of the amazing guests that really showcase African talent and creativity and innovation.

[00:10:23] And so a lot of people are doing great things in Africa but the media companies that are mostly just Western media companies that are run by people who don't really know the continent that well, they're always telling the same stories and focusing on the same people.

[00:10:36] We like to focus on unsung heroes and people who may not yet be household names. Well, some of them do become household names. I wanna focus for instance on a recent podcast interview that we did with Limitless Africa with the legendary Nollywood director, Kunle Afolaian.

[00:10:55] He came on and told us about his groundwork breaking partnership with Netflix and some of the amazing advice he was giving to young aspiring producers and directors and actors in Nigeria and elsewhere on the African continent. That to me is a real must listen

[00:11:10] for all would be film directors out there because we're often talking about Hollywood, we're often talking about Bollywood and that industry in India and more and more people are talking about Nollywood and the industry that's burgeoning in Nigeria

[00:11:26] but people don't know who the real movers and shakers are and who the real people providing the opportunities are and we wanna tell these stories of these people but from a really authentic perspective as opposed to the hop in and hop out approach

[00:11:39] that we often see in Western media where the coverage becomes really superficial. So when we say that we care about championing young African voices, we really wanna identify the people who have real credibility as opposed to gravitating towards the same stories

[00:11:54] that are told in other less authentic media platforms. So you touched on, I guess one of your missions is to shine the light on talent and unsung heroes which effectively is helping to reshape that narrative. So are there any specific strategies or approaches

[00:12:14] that you found effective in reshaping the narrative around say black culture and African identity? One strategy would be the high and low strategy. What do I mean by that? We focus on people who are doing things at the highest level. So for instance, I was able to interview

[00:12:37] the president of Cape Verde and I was joined by a group of young Cape Verdeans who asked them tough questions about his leadership and these are people under the age of 25, right? And that's important because this is where Africa's future lies.

[00:12:53] We were able to ask the president of Cape Verde, Jose Maria Neves, tough questions about economic development in Cape Verde. And so now we're talking to a head of state who is at the highest level. And then when I say low

[00:13:08] is we also talk to people in the grassroots who are just trying to launch their first venture, just trying to open their first restaurant, just trying to get into sports as a professional activity, people who are not yet well known but we wanna give them the same platform

[00:13:25] as we would give a head of state. And I think that approach that really makes our Limitless Africa podcast more inclusive is working because in the past three years we have spoken to all kinds of people and I've interviewed supermodels, champion boxers, chefs,

[00:13:42] venture capitalists, heads of state, students, young entrepreneurs in the agriculture sector, eco warriors who are really focused on climate change. And I feel like having those diverse voices that come not just from the English speaking world or the francophone world but also kind of includes people

[00:14:01] from the Lusophone world and also from African linguistic environments is something that is differentiated. And I think that's why we're seeing so much traction with the Limitless Africa podcast. So that's key to our strategy. It's not just focus on quote unquote important people

[00:14:18] but to also give a platform to people who are just emerging and haven't really done anything that is yet on the radar of kind of more established media companies. I like the sound of the high and low strategy. So guess leading on from there,

[00:14:35] what is your process in terms of creating content? How do you prioritize the type of stories that you want to have on the Limitless podcast? Well, we're lucky because we have three producers for each of the three languages. Yes. And so as I said earlier,

[00:14:53] our Limitless Africa podcast, which by the way is available on Spotify and also on Apple podcasts and also on our website, which is trueafrica.co, that is produced by three women operating in three different languages. We have a English language producer, a French language producer

[00:15:10] and a Portuguese language producer. And they are in touch with a group of local grand ambassadors, right? LBAs we call them. They are operatives and are people on the ground in all these kind of African cities and rural environments. They're connected to the people

[00:15:30] and they're the ones who tell us who the movers and shakers are and who the real unsung heroes are and who some of the next generation stars will be. And we listen to them and we filter it through. There's a funnel and then our three producers

[00:15:46] get to pick the people that we get to showcase on the Limitless Africa podcast, but we also have certain key themes that we focus on. I talked about climate change. I talked about sport. I talked about venture capital, entrepreneurship, feminism, human rights. There's public health issues.

[00:16:04] And we try to balance out these important issues with having voices coming from all different parts of Africa, North, South, East, West, Central Africa and all these three languages plus some African languages. And then with that, we release two episodes a week.

[00:16:22] And I feel that that's a very democratic approach to showcasing some of the best talent that is coming out of the African continent and also that is coming out of the African diaspora because we sometimes interview people who are living in America or in Europe

[00:16:39] or even in Latin America or Asia. So it's important for us to show these different voices and balance it out. You touched on something quite important there in terms of you have people on the ground who help identify unsung heroes and unique stories.

[00:16:57] So what role do you see platforms such as True Africa playing? I guess in the broader sense in terms of the movements for social equality or equity in Africa. I feel like a lot of people are doing great things, but no one knows who they are.

[00:17:15] And I feel like if more people knew who they were, we would actually be able to affect policy and investment and foreign direct investment and so on. And for us, it's also really important to not just be a podcast for the elite.

[00:17:30] Many people in Africa don't listen to podcasts. A lot of our listeners for the actual podcast version are living in Europe or America, but it's really important for us to broadcast our Limitless Africa podcast also via radio. So we're not just online. We also have radio partnerships

[00:17:49] in over 30 African countries. And this podcast is broadcast in African countries. And radio is important because in English, in French and Portuguese, from Lagos to Maputo, Sierra Leone, Toonami, to Kinshasa, we're able to reach people who are just basically listening on the radio,

[00:18:07] which is the most accessible form of media for people on the African continent. So if we're able to influence the influencers, the people in power, the policymakers, the big time entrepreneurs, and also have the same message broadcast to everyday people all over the continent

[00:18:25] in the language that they understand, I feel like we will be able to change the way that Africa is perceived because there's still a lot of reticence from certain investors to be able to put money into African ventures and to fund African opportunities,

[00:18:40] even though they might be considered creative or innovative. Interesting, interesting. So you mentioned in terms of your radio and media partnerships, and also I guess the ability to reach people who are just listening on the radio. I guess it could be said that Africa is almost

[00:18:57] like the final frontier for global media industries who are looking to grow. What would be your thoughts on that statement? Well, I think that we have to just look at the basic demographic facts. I often talk about the fact that there's more children born in Nigeria every year

[00:19:16] than the entire European Union of 27 countries. Yes. I mean, if you look at the birth rates, if you look at the fact that 60% of the population is under the age of 25 on the African continent, it's the youngest continent. And as a result, it's the continent of the future

[00:19:32] because not every African wants to hop on these rickety boats and make their way to Lampedusa in Italy or find a way to get into Europe. Some of them actually want to seize opportunities on the ground in their country, in their homeland.

[00:19:49] And I feel like the fact that we often focus on African solutions to African problems, it's not just Afro-optimism. It's really because we believe that these young Africans will help to change the world. Why? Because they have the energy, the vitality, the innovation, the creativity.

[00:20:07] What they don't have is the infrastructure. What they don't have is public policy that favors their own personal development or professional development. What they don't have is enough investment flowing through the borders and in order for their startups to actually thrive.

[00:20:26] And so we believe that given proper investment in human capital and also in financial capital in some of these African markets that are showing promise, these young Africans will actually create things that will be beneficial to the entire world, not just the African continent.

[00:20:44] I guess with that in mind, do you believe that the rest of the world is starting to see the creative and commercial potential in terms of African stories and the opportunities that they present? I feel like the world is catching on, right?

[00:21:00] I mean, the world is catching on and the world is catching up in both ways. Catching on and catching up in this case means that soft power that is coming out of Africa is something that I'm noticing very much with the rise of Afro-beats. Yes. Right?

[00:21:14] This music art form that came out of Lagos in Nigeria and is now spreading all over the continent is a big story. And I often talk about how people are listening to Afro-beats all over the world. I shared recently with a journalist, my friend Yinka Adegoke,

[00:21:34] who's the editor of Semaphore Africa. It's a really media platform focused on Africa and we work sometimes closely together, True Africa and Semaphore Africa. I shared with Yinka how last time I was in Kyoto in Japan, the taxi driver was listening to Afro-beats,

[00:21:53] even though he could barely understand English. So when I go to Brazil now, when I go to London, when I go to Paris, when I go to Stockholm, when I go to New York, obviously where I live, I see people dancing to Afro-beats pretty much everywhere

[00:22:08] and the potential that is linked to the power of a Whiskit or a Burner Boy, I feel like that is just setting the tone for more of African talent. So it's not just musical talent or film talent, like I mentioned earlier with Nollywood,

[00:22:29] but now the next frontier is gonna be talent in people who are creating really interesting startups that are looking at mitigating climate change because Africa suffers so much from climate change, even though Africa does not emit as much CO2 as other continents.

[00:22:46] And I'm thinking of people who are gonna be the new tech entrepreneurs creating solutions around artificial intelligence as applied to African problems, and again, creating African solutions to African problems. So these are the things that I'm looking to see and a lot will come from education

[00:23:04] that the youth has access to in Africa, but it also will come from partnerships outside of Africa. You touched on a key point there, the soft power of music, specifically Afrobeats. Do you think or believe as Africans, we understand how to fully leverage this soft power,

[00:23:23] I guess for economic value? I don't think we do, unfortunately. I'm so glad you asked me that question because this is something that I think about a lot as somebody who has been a media entrepreneur since I was in my early 20s who's launched several successful media ventures

[00:23:39] and tech ventures and now a venture capital firm focused on innovation. I feel like unfortunately the issue of intellectual property is not yet well understood. We actually had an episode on that on Limitless Africa in the last season where we spoke about the importance

[00:23:58] of owning your IP, your intellectual property. And I was so surprised when I learned that Fela Kuti, the original master of the original Afrobeats, not Afrobeats, but Afrobeats without an S, that a lot of his masters in intellectual property have been purchased by an American businessman.

[00:24:17] That was very surprising to me because I feel like Africans should own their intellectual property and I feel like there's still a lot of education that needs to be done around leveraging that soft power through ownership as opposed to just giving away the fruit of your imagination,

[00:24:37] of your creativity and of your innovation. So I guess from your perspective, how do you believe we can go about leveraging this soft power? I guess one as individuals, as artists, and two as economies, governments. You know, there's probably huge opportunities, say for instance, the Nigerian government

[00:24:56] to leverage the soft power that Afrobeats brings. I feel like we need to help create African champions in the creative industries and also in other industries, but I'm gonna focus just for now on the creative industries because those are the industries that I know best.

[00:25:14] You know, I feel like we need our own streaming platforms that will be vibrant, that will go toe to toe with Netflix, that are focusing on, again, African content for African populations in Africa and also outside of Africa. And with those tech platforms

[00:25:31] that are disseminating the creativity of Africa via a soft power strategy, I feel like people will discover more African music, more African films, more African art, and that will help to kind of show more pride in the creations that are truly made in Africa.

[00:25:48] And we also need more events, more art fairs that are actually held on the African continent. My friend Turia El-Ghlawi created 11 years ago a contemporary African art fair called 154. One continent for 54 countries and I don't know if you've heard of it, Terzer, but it's great.

[00:26:06] She's been a past guest on the podcast. Oh, wonderful. Makes sense. We're on the same beat and it's wonderful because I've been to every edition of her Marrakesh edition for 154 since she started and I think it's important for her to be doing it in her home country, Morocco.

[00:26:22] And then Tokeny Peterson is doing it also in Lagos with ArtXLagos, which is another wonderful art fair taking place in Lagos. So there's a lot of initiatives like that that I think are really important because they're driven by Africans, often Africans who've actually worked outside of Africa

[00:26:39] and learn some of the kind of practices that help to sustain these ventures. And the more we aggregate these kinds of ventures and the more we collaborate across these kinds of ventures and initiatives, then I think that's when we will actually start owning more of our intellectual property

[00:26:55] and kind of showcasing the best that Africa has to offer the world. You mentioned in terms of creating our own streaming and tech platforms. Do you believe this will help preserve and promote Africa's cultural authenticity whilst also developing, I guess, stories or products for a global audience?

[00:27:18] I do. I think it's really important because Netflix is great. We love Netflix, but they're an American company in Silicon Valley. They're very much focused on profit back to the American shareholders. But I remember when Iroko TV was launched

[00:27:36] and they were looking to showcase kind of TV shows and allowing people to watch unlimited movies and TV series, and it's wonderful. And they were growing at one point, which they showed a lot of promise, but unfortunately the growth was stunted.

[00:27:53] And I feel like Iroko's TV has stalled a little bit, even though they still have the platform that allows you to get unlimited access to movies and TV shows and more. It's great, but I feel like it could be even bigger than it is now.

[00:28:09] And I believe we need to support these kinds of ventures because there's a need for it. There is pent up demand for people who wanna watch African movies, African TV shows from an African perspective, as opposed to just relying on things that are imported from a Netflix platform.

[00:28:29] So I believe that we need to do the same with music. We need our own African Spotify that will again allow easy access, not just to music, but also to podcasts like the Limitless Africa podcast that I host. And I feel like the more we help governments understand

[00:28:50] that investment in those creative industries can actually help to create jobs and reduce youth unemployment on the continent, I feel like that will ultimately have a ripple effects all over the African continent. And these African champions, these bigger companies will help to actually nurture

[00:29:11] and incubate new kinds of smaller startups that will be built around these platforms that are the African champions that I'm imagining. You touched on something that I'm quite passionate about in terms of job creation for the youth. So within, I guess, the work that you do,

[00:29:30] have you seen or identified ways in which we can nurture the next generation of media professionals and create that continuous pipeline of African creators and storytellers? Yeah, I've thought about this a lot because after I started seeing quite a bit of success while still in my early 20s

[00:29:52] with my first media company, True, and then I launched Trace immediately after True folded after a year. I launched Trace in London and I started seeing a lot of success after I moved to New York. I realized that it's important to actually build workshops

[00:30:11] and training programs where people like you, Terzer and me, actually create custom programs for the next generation of media entrepreneurs in Africa. We just basically share with them the tricks of the trade and lead them through workshops where they can explore case studies

[00:30:29] and help to create their own adventures, at least ideate on them so that we can help to train them so that they learn from us but we actually also end up learning from them. So there's nothing like being on the ground on the African continent,

[00:30:44] leading workshops with students and young entrepreneurs and builders and dreamers so that they can actually create their own ventures because you can't be what you cannot see. So the more they interact with people like you and me, the more they will have the confidence

[00:31:00] to actually launch their own ventures and do something as opposed to just talk about launching ventures without actually really doing it. I love the idea of that. If you're interested, I'm more than happy to launch an initiative such as that. I'm already doing it.

[00:31:17] I was in East Watini last month. I've been to Nairobi three times. I've been to 20 African countries, often in partnership with the US Department of State which funds these training programs. I do a lot with the US State Department because they're very committed to that Africa-US relationship.

[00:31:36] And I often find myself leading workshops at US embassies or in other entrepreneurship centers in these countries where we invite people and we talk about what we've learned, lessons learned. And we also kind of look at the local context as opposed to just replicating what worked in America

[00:31:55] or worked in the UK or worked in France and try to do the same in Abidjan or Lomé where I am or in Dar es Salaam or Johannesburg for instance. Brilliant, I'll be looking forward to my invite Claude. Yeah, absolutely. I mean it, we'll follow up on this.

[00:32:12] This is not just talk. No, we're definitely gonna make that happen. Fantastic. So I guess with these workshops and underground activities that you're involved with in Africa, what are some of the challenges and real life opportunities that you're seeing in terms of saying developing the media infrastructure

[00:32:31] not even for global consumption or distribution but just even for local consumption and distribution? The biggest challenge has been access to stable internet and actual connectivity. And that's really, when I talk about inclusive earlier, I always think of rural and urban environments having the same access to infrastructure.

[00:32:55] And unfortunately throughout my travels on the African continent, whether it's Nigeria or Senegal or Togo where I am now or Ghana or Kinshasa, DRC or South Africa the problem is outside of the major metropolises outside of the major urban areas,

[00:33:15] people who are on the fringes in the rural areas do not have access to the same internet connectivity. And this is really problematic from an ICT perspective, from an information communication technology perspective because they don't have access to the information. As a result, they don't have access

[00:33:34] to the opportunities that people in these rural areas. And I'm really looking at this digital divide and hoping that these governments finally wake up and push from a regulatory perspective, these telcos to invest more in rural areas so that our workshops and the work that we do

[00:33:54] with these incubators and these accelerators for young entrepreneurs are not just confined to the capital city or the big cities but are also accessible to people living in underserved rural areas. So I mean, it's clear that you're well traveled and you've been to many countries within the continent

[00:34:15] but are there any specific countries that you're seeing a particularly vibrant or innovation in terms of their use of new media? I would say that Nairobi is the city in Africa that I find to be the most impressive with respect to use of new media

[00:34:35] and understanding of new technologies and the power of digital media for communication but also for political change, right? You're seeing radical change right now that is being led by the youth and driven by social media. And I think that that sort of empowerment

[00:34:54] through technology and media is really favored of the fact that Nairobi has become a bit of a hub for tech companies, big and small and this kind of permeates the business environment but also the social economic discourse and the political discourse around the need

[00:35:11] for a better future that is created for the youth. And I find that technology that is used for that kind of change is very, very, very positive. And I feel like other countries are not as advanced as Kenya is with respect to integrating new technologies

[00:35:30] into everyday life, whether it's for activism or for searching for jobs or for just simple kind of communication. So as you highlighted, change is led by the youth and it's safe to say that the youth, new talent entering the industry usually bring new innovations and trends.

[00:35:52] Are there any specific trends in Africa's media industry that you're currently seeing that you're excited about? I'm really very much into audio. I mean, I know I've spoken a lot about the Limitless Africa podcast but I really love audio because even though

[00:36:11] I launched a print publication that was a monthly magazine that I published for 14 years and even though I launched a television network with two business partners that is not one of the leading television networks in Africa and other parts of the world,

[00:36:26] I'm in a bare bones mindset right now where I'm really thinking about how millions of people can have access to this content that's created. There's so much content out there and everybody wants video and more video and YouTube and this and that.

[00:36:41] I'm really looking at radio and audio and how people can innovate around creating content via radio that could be accessible to the masses because you don't even need to have electricity to have access to the radio. I see it when I'm on the continent,

[00:36:57] people are in their cars, even at home, they listen to the radio and I feel like there's a lot of innovation that will come in the next few years for radio projects that are kind of focused on underdeveloped countries that are looking to find solutions that include people

[00:37:16] across all socioeconomic classes of a country as opposed to just the elite who have access to cable television and satellite and information via video and television that is coming from all over the world. Thank you for sharing that. So moving from current trends and looking to the future,

[00:37:40] this is a very general question but where do you see Africa's media space in five years time with regards to say the innovation and the conversion of tech and media? Well, I really was a pioneer. I'll just say it without sounding pretentious.

[00:37:57] I was a pioneer in this space because I started kind of looking at African media almost three decades ago, really when I was in my early 20s as I said. And I really wanted at that time to focus on entertainment and youth culture as I said.

[00:38:13] And so we ended up launching a television network around music videos and just entertainment broadly defined. I'm really thinking that in the next five years there will be new media projects, digital media projects that will launch in different African countries that are digital media projects

[00:38:31] that are not necessarily just about entertainment but also that are maybe more focused on sports, that are more focused on other sectors that are interesting to people all over the continent. And I feel like a lot of homegrown content will be produced and I feel like the fact

[00:38:48] that people will be able to access this homegrown content on their devices, whether it's audio or in some cases video, it means that there's gonna be a proliferation of kind of smaller media ventures that are launching all over the continent. And eventually in the next 10 to 15 years

[00:39:07] it will consolidate. And that is how this consolidation will inevitably lead to a few kind of African champions that will be the first port of call for people who are looking for access to kind of authentic African content that speaks to the masses as opposed to the content

[00:39:23] that is just imported and created by people living in the Western world thinking that this is what Africans want and need. I agree 100%. So if we look closer to home, where do you see yourself and True Africa in five years time? What impact will you be making

[00:39:42] in the African media space? Well, I'm looking to have the Limitless Africa podcast just more and more refined and just to showcase more and more of those African talents that I mentioned earlier and to always kind of be one step ahead of people in that sense.

[00:40:02] I really wanna be able to showcase people first before they become big. And when they do actually become big, I wanna be able to have interview sessions with them that really get right to the heart of the matter without trying to sugarcoat any of these important issues

[00:40:15] that are key to African survival. And if True Africa is perceived as a very authentic media company that produces the leading podcast for Africa, which is Limitless Africa, then I will declare victory because I will feel that we will have reached millions of people

[00:40:32] and actually shared information with them, opened their eyes to the possibilities and I will feel like I've done a lot with respect to helping to change the media landscape. And I'm not doing this alone, I'm doing this with a wonderful team.

[00:40:45] Many of my team members have been with me for years, some for more than a decade, some for more than 15 years. And we embarked on this journey a long time ago because we believe in the potential of young Africans and their ability to eventually change the world.

[00:41:01] Fantastic, that's what I like to hear. Quote of the Week. As people, we often have quotes, mantras, African proverbs or affirmations that keep us going when times are challenging or when times are good. Do you have one that you can share with us today? Oh, wow.

[00:41:19] So I learned a lot when I read the book, Mandela's Way. It's a wonderful book. It was a book that was written by the former editor-in-chief of Time Magazine. And it's a really inspiring book. And I think they call it Lessons on Life, Love and Courage.

[00:41:36] It was written by Richard Stengel, Rick Stengel, who was the former editor-in-chief of Time Magazine who spent a lot of time with Nelson Mandela when he was editor of Time Magazine and after he was editor of Time Magazine. He also collaborated with Mandela on his autobiography,

[00:41:53] The Long Walk to Freedom and traveled with him all over South Africa and all over the world. And there is something in that book that really spoke to me. It is two specific chapters that talk about the importance of leading from the front

[00:42:08] and also leading from the back. And so that is for me, something that's really, really important. Two types of leadership that are complimentary. How do you lead from the front and then how do you lead from the back? And that also leads me to something

[00:42:25] that my late father used to say when I was a child here in Lomé, Togo. My father passed away in April 2000, so 24 years ago. But he used to say, there's no problems, only solutions. And as I read that book, Mandela's Way, I really understood that yes,

[00:42:46] there's no problems, only solutions. And that is an important personal motto. Fantastic, brilliant, brilliant. And thank you for sharing that with us, Claude. So we've come to the end of today's conversation. It's been a refreshing conversation. I've really enjoyed it. I so enjoyed it. Really, truly.

[00:43:05] Yes, I've really enjoyed it. So I was wondering before you leave us, do you have any closing remarks, final calls to action for people who are interested in the work that you do at True Africa or people who are just interested in exploring the African media space?

[00:43:22] I will only say that honestly, like I've spoken a lot about the Limitless Africa podcast because I'm very proud of it. And please go to Apple Podcasts or Spotify or even to our trueafrica.co website. Again, we have new episodes every Monday and every Thursday.

[00:43:40] Search for Limitless Africa and my face will pop up and please give us a chance and listen to it because we've put in a lot of work into creating something that feels truly authentic and differentiated. And if you listen to it, do leave a review

[00:43:55] because we need to get the word out there about Unlimited Africa. So thank you very much for this opportunity to talk about my own African dream. No problem, Claude. It's been a pleasure having you on the podcast. Thank you for joining me today. Obviously there's clear common ground

[00:44:11] and crossover with what we are both doing in the African media space. It's a big space. And as we've said in past conversations, we're stronger together collaborating. So keep up the great work highlighting the stories of unsung heroes in Africa. You too, Tercer. It was a real pleasure.

[00:44:31] We are united. We will stay united. Thank you. Thank you to everyone who has listened and stay tuned to the podcast. If you've enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, share or tell a friend about it. You can also rate review us in Apple Podcasts

[00:44:46] or wherever you download your podcast. Thank you and see you next week for the Unlocking Africa podcast.