Phiona Okumu

From DJ to Spotify’s Head of Music in Sub-Saharan Africa, Phiona Okumu has always been a lover of music and this love has led to her success today. She transitioned to Spotify after three years at Apple Music where she led editorial, label & artist relations with the goal of amplifying African music throughout the world. 

In her first two years at Spotify, she was the Artist and Label Partnerships manager focusing on South Africa, the sole Sub-Saharan country where Spotify had a presence at the time. When the brand expanded to nearly 40 more African countries in February 2021, Okumu was promoted to head of music for the entire Sub-Saharan region. 

In this role, she is in charge of the regional teams that help shape Spotify's visibility in Africa, which include brand and innovative divisions, marketing teams, and artist- and label-collaborative managers. 

Okumu has a passion and mission to elevate emerging African artists. Strategy, innovation and culture have been the building blocks in taking African music to the next level.