Obi Asika set to bring expertise as DG of NCAC

What does Obi Asika's appointment as Director General of the National Council of Arts and Culture mean for the Nigerian creative industry?

Obi Asika is one of Nigeria's most respected executives in the creative industry. From the Nigerian music industry to arts and culture, Obi Asika has continued to leave a trail of impacts.

On January 14, 2024, Obi Asika was appointed the Director-General of the National Council for Arts and Culture, NCAC by President Bola Tinubu. His appointment has been praised as a deserving one that places a round peg in a round hole.

At the onset of Nigerian music in the early 2000s, Obi Asika was one of the executives who saw the potential abound in Nigerian mainstream music and committed himself to growing what would later become Afrobeats.

He founded the record label Storms Record in 1991 and the label will go on to play a pivotal role in the development of Afrobeats. Storm Record served as home to some of Nigeria's biggest music stars whose talents set the pace for the success of Nigerian mainstream music.

Rapper Naeto C, Ikechukwu, and Sasha P were all signed to Storm Records. Naeto C is one of Nigeria's rap greats whose music and style brought sophistication and aesthetics to the rap scene. Sasha P's contributions to the scene as a female MC helped open the door and inspire a generation of female rappers like Bouqui, Eva, Muna, and several more.

The label signed Jazzman Olofin who is one of the earliest voices in Nigerian Street Hop as well as R&B icons Darey Art Alade, Banky W, and Tosin Martins.

While Afrobeats is now enjoying global success, a lot of this is owed to the early efforts of the likes of Obi Asika who not only invested in the development of the local ecosystem but also the international success of Afrobeats.

In the documentary, "Journey of the Beats" which Asika helped put together, he shared how he used to take with him compact discs of music videos of Afrobeats songs to South Africa where he plugs them for airplay in the then-music station Channel O.

Obi Asika's crusade in sharing the gospel of Nigerian music extended to the UK and US where he also made impacts so significant that he was appointed to the African Advisory Committee of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African Art in Washington DC.

In an interview with Culture Journalist Emmanuel Esomnofu, Obi Asika said he was "born into culture," and this statement resonates in his eye-catching CV where his impact has been felt across different sectors.

A legendary power broker in the African media space,, Obi Asika's OutSource Media has produced entertainment reality shows such as Big Brother Nigeria, The Apprentice Africa, Dragons Den, Glo Naija Sings, Vodafone Icons Ghana, Calabar Rocks, Amstel Malta Box Office, 100% Naija, And the Winner Is..., Football Legends, The Voice, and Ignite Africa.

His passion for developing talent has also seen him serve as a judge on the music talent show Nigerian Idol where he offers mentorship and invaluable advice to budding artists.

"I have always believed that our soft power is our biggest power and thankful for the opportunity to represent that community at this level," Obi Asika said in a post on his Instagram account to announce his appointment.

Asika comes to this role no stranger to working for the government. In his three-decade industry career, he served as a special adviser to former President Goodluck Jonathan.

Asika is one of many ecosystem leaders that the Tinubu administration has tapped to lead a government agency. Tinubu also appointed Kannywood actor Ali Nuhu as the Managing Director of the Nigerian Film Corporation. Tubosun Tijani, a tech founder was appointed minister of the Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy.

While Asika and some of these new appointees have firsthand experience of what the industry needs, running a government parastatal, the bureaucracy of the civil service, could present a stumbling block to the type of changes and policies for which the members of the industry are currently applauding the announcement.