Azawi has been Swangz Avenue’s flagship artiste this year. The efforts the label has been channeling towards the artiste’s brand are evident.
Following the successful release of her debut album, African Music, the label has been taking branding choices that give an impression of the international strides the artiste is envisioned to make.
In this issue, we highlight some of the moves the label has taken to make Azawi one of the most exciting brands in the music industry today.
Stellar music production
African Music, Azawi’s debut album was positioned for international markets straight from the roots of production.
The album enlisted the finest talents in the country such as Nessim, Kusseim, Michael Fingerz, and Bomba. The label raised the bar a notch higher with the magical fingers of Ayo Lizer, who is popularly known for his work with Diamond Platnumz.
The video production
The direction Swangz was taking with Azawi became vivid to industry observers upon the release of My Year. My year can confidently pass for the most impressive video of the year. Swangz Avenue went out of the way to seek Zambian director Kenny Roc Mumba whose reputation has had him direct for Netflix and brands like Airtel.
The video was sent to the states and was color graded by the same company that color graded Zack Snyder’s Justice League.
The label continued taking bigger strides, flying out to Zanzibar with an in-house director, Marvin Musoke, who offered the viewership top-notch quality with videos, Slow Dancing, and Ache for you. Information privy to this website has it that the video guru pulled off this fete with a state-of-the-art Red Ranger Helium.
Fashion and style patterns
In an interview with a local paper, Azawi’s manager, Sir Jaylor, noted that when she was handed the task of managing the artiste, she had to redefine and come up with style patterns that matched the label’s vision for the artiste.
The manager indeed understood the assignment as Azawi’s Instagram has been nothing short of pristine.
In her latest post, she is resplendent in an ensemble of neat white baggy garbs, her signature sunglasses, and a greyscale color theme.
Many fashion authorities such as Sheila Gashumba and Prim Asiimwe were quick to appreciate the look naming it the cutest fit of the month.
Marketing platforms
For Azawi, the end goal is African music being sold to the world. The album has been picking up heat on Apple music. In a recent post, the slow dancing act sent out love to the people of Papua New Guinea after Slow Dancing was charted 13 among the top 100 songs on Apple music in the country.
Besides streaming, the industry took notes when Billboards across various American states such as Atlanta were seen advertising her album. This was after her album had 10,000 plays on Apple music in the US.
Brand affiliations
From the onset, Azawi was to play at the highest echelons of the game and it is to no surprise that her brand endorsements are in tandem with this.
Azawi was earlier selected to be one of the influencers of Black Shines Brightest, a global campaign by Guinness, UBL’s leading premium beer.
This further positioned Azawi herself as a brand that goes and does more beyond Ugandan borders.
Azawi has announced herself in the game with her debut album, African Music, which is partly defining the future Uganda music should be taking. Azawi herself is morphing into an enviable brand that is projected to secure Uganda a piece of the “international cake”. She is undoubtedly one of the artists to watch out for come 2022.
