Afrobeats may be the loud, visible face of Africa’s global music rise, but another quieter revolution is taking place in studios from Lagos to Johannesburg and Nairobi. 

African producers and composers are now shaping the soundtracks of major films, Netflix series, documentaries and even festival projects ,often without their names being as widely known as the artists on the posters.

They are the people who decide how a chase scene feels, what emotion a final shot leaves in your chest, and how African stories sound when they travel around the world.

Here are the ten African producers and composers making serious moves in film and TV scoring

1. Tolu Obanro (Tyanx) – The New Sound of Big Nollywood

If you’ve streamed a high-budget Nigerian film in the last few years and felt like it sounded “bigger” and more cinematic than old Nollywood, there is a good chance Tyanx was involved. Tolu Obanro, known professionally as Tyanx, has become one of the most sought-after composers in Nigeria’s film industry. His name appears on a run of major titles: Gangs of Lagos, Jagun Jagun, Brotherhood, House of Secrets, Mikolo, Ada Omo Daddy and A Tribe Called Judah, among others.

What sets Tyanx apart is his ability to fuse Hollywood-style orchestration with sounds that are unmistakably Nigerian — Yoruba talking drums, choral textures, subtle chants and percussive grooves. The result is a sonic world where a sword fight in Jagun Jagun or a gritty street scene in Gangs of Lagos feels epic, but never generic.

2. Kulanen Ikyo – The Architect of “The Black Book”

Kulanen Ikyo has quietly built one of the strongest filmographies of any Nigerian screen composer. A native of Benue State, he first came to broader prominence scoring Kunle Afolayan’s period thriller October 1, and he has since worked on The CEO, 4th Republic, Lionheart, Òlòtūré, Blood Sisters and, most recently, the Netflix global hit The Black Book.

Ikyo’s music often blends dark, low strings, pulsing percussion and haunting vocal textures with subtle African rhythmic patterns. In The Black Book, the score has to carry grief, revenge, political conspiracy and redemption — and he manages to tie all those emotional threads together without overpowering the story. In a film like Lionheart, by contrast, his writing leans lighter and more melodic, matching the warmth of the story.

3. Kyle Shepherd – Cape Town’s Jazz Maestro Turned Netflix Mainstay

South African pianist and composer Kyle Shepherd started as an acclaimed jazz musician before moving heavily into film and TV composing. That jazz background is clear in his harmony and phrasing, but in recent years he has become one of Netflix Africa’s go-to composers. His credits include crime thriller Unseen, the stylish revenge drama Savage Beauty, multiple seasons of teen series Blood & Water, and the nature-survival show Surviving Paradise.

Shepherd’s scores stand out because they never feel like generic library music. He uses warm pianos, textured strings, muted brass and rhythmic motifs that often nod to Cape Town’s musical heritage without shouting it. In Unseen, his music amplifies the tension and loneliness of a woman caught in a criminal web. In Blood & Water, his work helps define the cool, aspirational tone of the series while still keeping it grounded in South African youth culture.

4. Zethu Mashika – The South African Versatile Storyteller

If there is one word that captures South African composer Zethu Mashika, it is “versatile.” His credits read like a map of modern African screen storytelling: espionage series Queen Sono, dance drama JIVA!, gritty crime series Justice Served, animated anthology Kizazi Moto: Generation Fire, cosy mystery Recipes for Love and Murder, long-running drama Gomora and true-crime docuseries Rosemary’s Hitlist.

In Queen Sono, his music has to match the tone of a global spy thriller while still feeling grounded in Johannesburg and across the continent. In Recipes for Love and Murder, he shifts to something more intimate and small-town, layering folk influences and gentle motifs to support the show’s warmth. For Kizazi Moto, he steps into futuristic, Afro-sci-fi soundscapes that push far beyond traditional scoring.

5. Mezuo – The Nigerian-American Voice Behind “Clash”

Mezuo, full name Charles Chiemezuo O’kehie, represents a younger generation of Nigerian-diaspora composers straddling both African and North American markets. Born in Houston to Nigerian parents, he built his reputation as a rapper and producer before landing his first major scoring job on the Canada–Nigeria co-produced film Clash, which later appeared on Netflix. Multiple news reports and interviews credit him as the film’s original score composer.

Mezuo’s score for Clash merges hip-hop drums, Afrobeats rhythms, melodic synths and cinematic strings, echoing the film’s themes of identity, immigration and intergenerational tension. It feels modern and youthful, but also polished enough to sit comfortably next to any international drama.

6. Gray Jones Ossai – Giving Nigeria’s Teen Stories Their Sound

Gray Jones Ossai is part of the new wave of Nigerian composers coming out of studios like Anthill and other independent outfits. He is credited as a music composer and sound professional on shows like Netflix’s Far From Home and the thriller Blood Vessel, both of which target a younger, global-facing audience.

Ossai’s work leans into textured pads, emotional chords and contemporary drum programming. In Far From Home, the music helps paint Lagos as a city of both danger and opportunity, matching the show’s focus on ambition, class and youth culture. His background as a sound designer also means he pays attention to how score sits next to dialogue, effects and ambience.

7. Jim Chuchu – Nairobi’s Multidisciplinary Visionary

Kenyan artist Jim Chuchu is known as much for his visual work and storytelling as for his music. He was a member of the experimental group Just a Band and co-founder of The Nest Collective, before increasingly moving into film and television. In 2024, he composed the music for the Netflix documentary Hack Your Health: The Secrets of Your Gut, which explores the science of the human microbiome for a global audience.

Chuchu’s score uses electronic pulses, minimal piano lines and subtle sound design to make complex science feel engaging rather than dry. His broader body of work often combines East African melodic fragments with avant-garde production choices, making his sound instantly recognisable once you tune in.

8. Tatenda Terence Kamera (Mr Kamera) – From Afrobeats Clubs to “Blood & Water”

Tatenda Terence Kamera, popularly known as Mr Kamera, was already successful as an Afrobeats and Afropop producer before stepping deeper into film and TV scoring. Born in Zimbabwe and based in South Africa, he has produced for a range of African artists and is credited as a composer and producer for Netflix’s South African teen series Blood & Water, particularly in later seasons, as well as for Nollywood film Glamour Girls.

The Blood & Water theme, which he co-created, is a perfect summary of his skillset: it features Afropop drum patterns, moody synths and a hook that feels both local and global. It gives the show a sonic identity that teen audiences immediately associate with the brand, much like American and British teen dramas have done for years.

9. Joel Assaizky – Johannesburg’s Genre-Hopping Composer

Joel Assaizky is a Johannesburg-based composer and multi-instrumentalist whose career covers everything from jazz performance to film and TV scoring. Biographical notes and credits list him as a composer on the South African Netflix-branded series Marked, as well as on films like Vaya and Big Nunu’s Little Heist.

In Marked, Assaizky has to balance heist energy, character drama and emotional stakes, and his cue writing moves from tense rhythmic pulses to gentle piano-led themes. In films like Vaya, which focus heavily on character and social context, his music stays out of the way but shapes mood in subtle, powerful ways.

10. Rodney Q Abia – Building Musical Worlds for Musicals and Animation

Rodney Abia, popularly credited as Rodney Abia t/as Q or Rodney Q, has carved out a niche at the intersection of Nigerian musicals, animation and socially minded storytelling. He has been credited as sound designer and composer for the animated anti-corruption film Emeka’s Money, produced in partnership with advocacy group Step Up Nigeria, and as songwriter and producer on the original soundtrack of the Nigerian musical film Obara’M.

Obara’M in particular shows his range: the soundtrack moves through highlife, gospel, theatre ballads and Afrobeats-influenced numbers, all tied together by consistent musical direction. As Nigeria experiments more with musical films and animated storytelling aimed at both children and adults, Rodney’s skillset — part composer, part sound designer, part producer,becomes even more valuable.