By Damilola Fatunmise
The African creative industry is being reckoned with across the globe, and at the vanguard of this development is Emmanuel Alade, CEO, Creatrix Empire, a UK/Nigeria-based multimedia company.
Alade created platforms that employ creatives and promote African artistes, which in turn help to transform the African narrative. Through its sister company, Afrobeatsglobal, Alade has also developed platforms that gives back to the community, and also appreciates African aesthetics through a quarterly body of work which focuses on lifestyle, music, entertainment, and topical issues – the Uncut Xtra magazine.
Now, the Uncut Xtra album is a body of work created by Afrobeatsglobal, and it supports the African community through the opportunities given to feature artists across the globe.
Speaking, Emmanuel Alade said, “My vision is to expand in terms of space and also impact the world. We are actually doing that already by creating the Uncut Xtra album, which helps young and talented artistes get their voices out there on a bigger platform. In 2021, I am looking to have four other branches and bigger platforms in the heart of Lagos,” he stated.
According to the artiste, spirituality and humility contributed to the development of his business. “First, it’s not just CEOs I look up to, I have mentors I listen to when my spirit is down. I listen to Les Brown and some preachers; this helps to deposit positivity into my body system, it helps to rekindle my hope and energy, directly or indirectly. I also listen to Steven Jakes and this helps a lot as it resonates things in my mind. What comes as a concern to me most times is when I see businesses or companies built years ago crumble as a result of the owner’s death, the vision also dies. Therefore, I want something that can transcend from generation to generation and live forever,” he affirms.