Creative media storyteller and live performance artist Yemi Kimbali, has said that Nigerian live music is reaching larger audiences at home and abroad, but the documentation of live performances remains inconsistent, leaving much of the country’s performance history vulnerable to being lost.

Live performances at concerts, church programmes, corporate events and community festivals are often recorded on multiple cameras and mobile phones. However, the resulting footage may lack basic information such as the event name, venue, date, performer and names of other contributors.

 Kimbali said the problem is not a lack of cameras but the absence of proper planning around documentation.

“Most events now have several cameras in the room. The problem is the absence of a plan for what should be captured, how it should be identified and what should happen to the material after the event,” he said.

His concerns come as Nigerian music continues to expand its international reach.

Spotify reported in February 2026 that the number of Nigerian artists on its platform had increased by 158 per cent since 2021. Earlier Spotify Loud & Clear reporting said Nigerian artists received more than N58 billion in royalties from the platform in 2024, while Reuters reported that 250 million user playlists contained at least one Nigerian artist.

Kimbali said the growing global audience for Nigerian music makes proper documentation of live performances increasingly important.

“Recorded music has a system,” he said. “A track has a title, a release date, credited contributors, artwork, distribution links and platform data. Live performance is less consistent.”

According to him, a strong performance can end up existing only as unnamed files on several phones, with an artist sometimes receiving a single compressed video days after the event.

He said documentation should begin before the artist takes the stage.

Artists and organisers, he explained, should first establish what the material will be used for, whether as a highlight reel, electronic press kit, sponsor report, full performance archive or short-form social media content.

That decision, he said, should determine the shot list, audio arrangements, permissions, camera orientation and the moments that receive priority.

Kimbali also stressed the importance of accurate credits, saying performance records should identify the artist, event, venue and date, as well as musicians, vocalists, arrangers and technical contributors where applicable.

“Credits are not a decorative caption,” he said. “They are part of the professional history of the work.”

Audio quality is another concern. Kimbali said visually attractive footage could fail to properly represent a music performance when the sound is distorted or incomplete.

He recommended that, where possible, event teams combine camera recordings with a clean feed from the sound desk while retaining enough audience sound to preserve the atmosphere of the performance.

“The goal is not to turn every event into a film production,” he said. “It is to make deliberate choices about the evidence the artist and organiser will need later.”

Kimbali also called for better organisation of files after events. He said archives should identify details such as the date, venue, event, performer, song or segment, content owner and usage permissions.

Artists, he added, should receive agreed materials within a clear timeframe, while original files should be preserved and selected clips edited for the platforms where they will be used.

Beyond promotion, Kimbali said better documentation could have commercial value for artists and event organisers.

Live footage can help event planners assess how an artist performs before an audience, while journalists may need photographs, background information and performance links. Sponsors can also use documented material to show what their support helped produce.

He said documentation also has cultural significance because live performances capture the interaction between artists and audiences and can show how an artist’s work develops over time.

“Some of the most revealing moments in an artist’s development happen before the major releases and large venues,” he said. “If those moments are not recorded with enough context, the public story begins only after success has arrived.”

Kimbali said artists should treat documentation as part of their professional preparation rather than something considered after a show.

He urged artists to keep accurate performance records, request appropriate files, credit collaborators and use their platforms to demonstrate their actual work.

Event organisers, he said, should include documentation requirements in production meetings and budgets, while media professionals should understand the music well enough to identify and capture significant moments.

“Nigeria does not need to record every second of every performance. It needs a more professional habit of deciding what deserves to remain and preserving it properly,” Kimbali said

He added: “The music is already travelling. The record of the work should be able to travel with it.”