Today’s gospel artistes in Nigeria are packaging their music in production styles that are instantly familiar to Afropop audiences. However, this stylistic cross-pollination between Afro-Gospel and Afropop is no accident.
One of the most unexpected collaborations in recent music history happened when American rapper, Gunna, surprised fans by bringing Nigerian gospel artiste, Victor Thompson, on stage during Gunna’s sold-out Los Angeles concert in 2023. Together, they performed Thompson’s viral hit “This Year” (featuring Ehis ‘D’ Greatest), a song that had already become one of the top Nigerian songs that year.
Days later, Gunna appeared on the remix. While he didn’t publicly explain why he chose to join the song, many fans speculated that perhaps the song’s message of hope and breakthrough resonated with him, especially after a difficult year marred by legal troubles and backlash within the hip-hop community. The remix earned a nomination for Top Gospel Song at the 2024 Billboard Music Awards. Although it lost to CeCe Winans’ “That’s My King,” its nomination alone signaled the growing global visibility of Afro-Gospel music.
Afro-Gospel is not new to Nigerian music. In the early 2000s and late 2010s, artistes like Midnight Crew, Infinity, Rooftop MCs, Dekunle Fuji, and BOUQUI infused gospel music with the urban sounds of their time. They redefined and expanded the gospel space by borrowing from R&B, hip-hop, Fuji, and Afropop to create faith-based music that could thrive outside church auditoriums. But, in recent times, the genre has ushered in something different. This faith-based urban sound is no longer just an alternative genre catering to Christian subcultures online, but it’s now actively influencing the mainstream.
In 2023, Anendlessocean became one of the standout voices of this movement. His brand of contemporary gospel music connects deeply with young Nigerians searching for God through relatable soundscapes. Towards the end of the year, he released “Gratitude”, a mid-tempo track soaked in thanksgiving and spiritual reflection. With its tender refrain, “Ese oh, Jesu” (“Thank you, Jesus” in Yoruba), the song struck a collective nerve in a country where religion and ritual appreciation are woven into the fabric of daily life. As Nigerians looked back on a challenging year and stepped into a new one, “Gratitude” became the unofficial anthem of the crossover season. It has since garnered over nine million streams on Spotify and counting.
Earlier this year, Lawrence Oyor – known for his spontaneous worship chants and meditative worship sets – released “Favour”, a spiritually charged anthem wrapped in lush rhythms. The song’s catchy call-and-response hook and promise of divine grace resonated far beyond gospel circles. Within weeks of release, “Favour” became a social media phenomenon. From TikTok challenges, Instagram reels, and even skits, there was no corner of the internet untouched by the song. In its debut month, it racked up 2.9 million Spotify streams and climbed to No. 2 on Apple Music Nigeria’s Top Songs chart. Today, it boasts over 13 million streams, a rare feat for any gospel song in a country where Afrobeats still dominates the sonic terrain.
Lawrence Oyor’s breakthrough on “Favour” mirrored similar successes in the scene. In February, Sounds of Salem released the uplifting “We Will Be Many,” featuring Lawrence Oyor and Moses Akoh. With its message of collective hope and spiritual expansion, the song gained momentum through user-generated content on TikTok – covers, memes, and even devotional skits – further demonstrating how Afro-Gospel’s reach extends well into lifestyle, youth culture, and even internet humor.
Three months after the massive success that “We Will Be Many” earned, “No Turning Back”, a 2024 release by Gaise Baba, experienced a remarkable resurgence fueled by a new collaboration with Lawrence Oyor. With its catchy hook, spiritual conviction, and viral-ready bounce, the remix clocked over 12 million streams in just one week, confirming that gospel-infused music had fully crossed over into popular culture.
Significantly, one key factor is that a new wave of sonic blending can partly explain the rise of Afro-Gospel. Today’s gospel artistes are packaging their music in production styles that are instantly familiar to Afropop audiences, think Amapiano log drums, street pop percussion, hip-hop cadences, and the melodic warmth of highlife. Take Anendlessocean’s “Nazarene,” the outro track on his 2023 album Decagon. It’s a song that is powered by the same log drums that dominate dancefloors across Nigeria, and the only real difference between it and a typical Amapiano-laced club song is the message: pure, passionate devotion to God, rather than the usual themes of pleasure and indulgence.
Even in the lyrics, the street influence is evident. When Anendlessocean sings “Orun o jina mo, o’n gbe mi debe o” (meaning “Heaven is no longer far, He’s taking me there”), he speaks the language of the streets. The phrase “o’n gbe mi debe” is a precursor to the slang term “trabaye”, a term associated with getting high. It’s a clever, culture-aware way of flipping street lingo for spiritual expression.
This stylistic cross-pollination between Afro-Gospel and Afropop is no accident. More gospel songs today carry the sonic fingerprint of producers skilled in Afropop, infusing them with bounce-heavy beats and polished arrangements. At the same time, artists like Limoblaze, Prinx Emmanuel, Greatman Takit, and KS Bloom are deliberately crafting songs that thrive both in Christian gatherings and in mainstream spaces like clubs and concerts.
As a result, Afro-Gospel is no longer tethered to the slow, solemn ballads once typical of church worship. Today, it’s a dynamic movement driven by young and middle-aged artists reimagining what gospel music can sound and feel like. With groovy drum patterns, dance-ready rhythms, and hooks tailored for the modern ear, these songs usher listeners into worship through lyrics and the kinetic joy of movement. It’s a sonic evolution that makes space for the spirit and the body.
Beyond sound and style, Nigeria’s emotional and spiritual climate plays a crucial role in the rise of Afro-Gospel music. Nigeria is one of the most religious countries in the world, with over 90% of its population identifying as Christian or Muslim, according to the Pew Research Center. This deep religiosity shapes private faith and public culture, making gospel music a powerful medium for expression and connection.
At the same time, Nigerians are navigating profound challenges: economic hardship, insecurity, political instability, and social volatility have become everyday realities. Unemployment rates remain high, inflation affects the cost of living, and incidents of violence or unrest often dominate the headlines. In such an environment, music that carries messages of hope, resilience, and divine intervention serves as a source of comfort and encouragement. For all the uplifting melodies and crisp production that songs like “Gratitude,” “Favour,” “This Year,” and “No Turning Back” carry, they resonate deeply with people because they serve as affirmations, prayers, and anthems of resilience. Importantly, tracks like “This Year” and “Favour” can easily speak to anyone who simply wants a better tomorrow, irrespective of their religion.
In this sense, there’s a clear connection between what Afro-Gospel is doing and what Afro-Adura – a prayer-themed offshoot of Street Pop – has achieved over the years: meeting people exactly where they are emotionally. While Street Pop channels the hustle and chaos of urban life, Afro-Gospel offers a comforting counterbalance of clarity and conviction – though its prayers are directed solely to God, without endorsing vices like fraud that Afro-Adura sometimes fuels.
Another critical factor driving Afro-Gospel’s rise is the way digital platforms have reshaped how music is discovered and consumed. Much of the genre’s breakout success can be traced to platform dynamics. TikTok, in particular, has blurred the lines between genres by rewarding virality over artist type or label backing. Songs that lend themselves to dances, memes, or quotable moments tend to thrive, and Afro-Gospel has found a natural fit in this space. A perfect example is Gaise Baba’s “No Turning Back” remix with Lawrence Oyor. Its choreography-heavy music video made it an ideal candidate for a TikTok trend, tapping into the visual and emotional sensibilities that appeal to Gen Z content creators.
More importantly, major streaming platforms are beginning to treat Afro-Gospel with the same algorithmic attention as mainstream Afrobeats. Editorial playlists now place gospel songs alongside secular chart-toppers. YouTube’s algorithm frequently recommends worship videos right after trending comedy skits. And digital radio stations are giving Afro-Gospel prime-time spins, integrating it more firmly into the mainstream soundscape.
Still, industry insiders say that beyond digital metrics and virality, structural support is key to sustaining the momentum. Chibunna Ugwu, Lead A&R, Iconic Stuff and an executive working closely with some Afro-Gospel artistes, believes the scene is on the cusp of something bigger. “I think we’re in a very strategic place. The next move could push us to global acclaim. We have a song doing 2M streams in 1 week. Right now I think we need more key players, execs, creatives willing to grind and push the game to the next level. Major international label signings will also go far,” he says. His perspective reveals a deeper reality that while Afro-Gospel is having its moment in the sun, the ecosystem around it is still in search of the muscle and machinery to sustain that momentum.
Oreoluwa Wilson, founder of AfroGospelPlaylist, offers a more personal lens. When asked why she thinks there’s a surge of interest among Nigerian youth in Afro-Gospel music, she said: “I feel like our generation connects deeply with certain types of music. For me, I was simply looking for an alternative to ‘worldly’ songs, something I could still relate to. Over time, I’ve come to realize that Afrogospel is much more than just that. I believe many people are also searching for music they can truly connect with.”
This growing digital traction for Afro-Gospel can also be linked to the proliferation of modern, youth-focused churches such as Celebration Church International (CCI), Harvesters International Christian Centre, The New Church, and many others across Nigeria’s urban centers. These churches are marked by high-energy services, media-savvy outreach, and congregations filled with Millennials and Gen Z worshippers. In such spaces, there’s less emphasis on traditional songs and more room for upbeat, Afro-Pop-informed praise songs that mirror what their members already listen to outside of Sunday service.
Taken together, all of these factors – stylistic fluidity, digital traction, cultural hunger for hope, and the shifting liturgies of youth-oriented congregations – reveal that the rise of Afro-Gospel is neither incidental nor accidental. It is the outcome of a moment where faith, form, and feeling converge in response to broader currents within Nigerian society.
The question, then, is not simply what is fueling Afro-Gospel’s current ascent, but what the ascent might mean and what it signals about the future. Is it a fleeting rise, anchored to digital virality? Or is it the first chapter in a deeper, more enduring recalibration of gospel’s place within Nigeria’s musical imagination?
If streaming patterns, artistic innovation, and audience devotion are any indication, the rise of Afro-Gospel in 2025 does not bear the mark of a passing trend but, rather, that of a full-blown movement that reflects a deeper shift in how young Nigerians are choosing to engage with faith and music.