Today we have seven new Top Videos to recommend. If there’s a theme, it’s genres colliding from reggae to rap, Afrobeats, a dreamy ballad, classical music elements, and a couple of unlikely collaborations, notably between Burna Boy and Mick Jagger.
Check out the full Afropop Top Videos playlist for all our recent selections. And remember, if you have suggestions of videos our fans would love, send them to [email protected] with the subject line “Top Videos 2025.” Enjoy!
Burna Boy (feat. Mick Jagger): “Empty Chairs “
Follow us on WhatsApp | LinkedIn for the latest headlines
Jagger’s hot take and Burna Boy’s cool rap rub shoulders nicely on this catchy track. Check out how the music changes with the singer. Crunchy classic rock morphs seamlessly into the spare pump of Afrobeats, and back. It’s a conversation across generations and continents, and good fun!
Wouter Kellerman, Rocky Dawuni, Matt B, Tony Succar: “They Know”
Dancy and playful, this funky Afro-salsa track brings together an unlikely set of collaborators. South African flautist Wouter Kellerman is known for venturing beyond his classical roots, picking up three Grammy Awards along the way. Matt B. is an American singer/songwriter/producer. And Tony Succar is a Peruvian-American percussionist/producer/bandleader. When they join forces with charismatic Ghanaian reggae man Rocky Dawuni, magic ensues.
Black Pearl Livingston: “Your Richness Is Life”
Black Pearl Livingston is the child of Bob Marley’s mother, Cedella, and Bunny Wailer’s father, Thaddeus, which makes her a sister to two-thirds of the original Wailers vocal trio. This brassy, high-production roots reggae number is essentially a remembrance of Bob, and an inspirational pep talk for hard times. “Don’t let life get you down.”
Ala.Ni: “Tief”
Born to Caribbean parents in London, moved to Paris to become a singer/songwriter, Ala.Ni spent two years poking around the Caribbean, all inspiration for her 2025 album Sunshine Music. This track rolls along on a perky backbeat groove with retro guitar sounds, the singer’s silk and sandpaper voice cutting through nicely with a meditation on slavery and a call for reparations.
Yilian Cañizares: “Vamos a Florecer”
Yilian Cañizares is a classicaly-trained Cuban flautist has long been at home swimming in jazz waters. Here, she forefronts her lustrous voice in a pean to nature that translates, “Let’s Bloom.” As arresting as Cañizares languorous vocal, are the natural images in this video. We see the singer’s body transform into the roots of a tree, and watch flowers grow from her hair. Then things really get surreal…
Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters
Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox
PapaRaZzle – THE WAIT
London-based PapaRaZzle has an Afrobeats sound that nods to R&B, soul and hip-hop. And it works, as his recent achievement of a place in the “10-million streams” club testifies. He has a thin, boyish voice and a sense of style worthy of a Congolese sapeur. This ode to “patience, love and longing” is emo pop for the Afrobeats generation.
Kizz Daniel: “To Be a Man”
Nigerian Afro-soul star rolls out another track from his anticipated 2025 album Uncle K. This one brings spare Afrobeats rap with a steady image of the singer speaking to someone off camera. The flow is cool, but more vivacious is his previous Uncle K track, a collaboration with Johnny Drille and Angelique Kidjo, “Police.”
Blaqbonez: “Everlasting Taker”
Here’s one with a little more edge. Blaqbonez is a Nigerian rapper with a fiercely loyal following. This number has strong class-rebellion overtones played over during a fast-paced, kinetic ride through a seaside community. Where? Hard to say as the singer was denied permission to film in Port Harcourt, his first choice. The video shifts between grainy, hand-held street shots and slick drone coverage of his giddy tow-truck ride, posse on hand. The video packs a lot into two minutes and has topped a-million views in its first month.
