DR. KING SMADE • JOURNAL

The Journal
Notes from the Afrobeats era and the systems behind the culture.

An archive of reflections, interviews, and field notes from the work of building culture at scale. Less hype, more infrastructure. Less headlines, more legacy.

Explore Journal Interviews & Conversations Culture & Commentary
Afrobeats Creative Economy African Diaspora Culture & Legacy
Archive
Context over clout
Field Notes
Festivals • policy • partnerships
Authority
Built from lived work
Dr. King SMADE
Journal, not a blog.
A record of the rooms, the work, and what it takes to make culture last.
Featured
Why Spaces Like Jambo Matter for Accra’s Creative Economy
Creative Economy, Cultural Infrastructure, Africa & Diaspora, Creative Leadership, Urban Culture
Ghana, Jambo Spaces, African creatives, Creative Infrastructure, Creative Economy, African Creative Economy, Diaspora Roundtables, Cultural ownership, Creative hubs, African innovation, Sustainable growth, Arts and culture in Africa, Creative ecosystems
Why Spaces Like Jambo Matter for Accra’s Creative Economy
Creative Economy, Cultural Infrastructure, Africa & Diaspora, Creative Leadership, Urban Culture
Ghana, Jambo Spaces, African creatives, Creative Infrastructure, Creative Economy, African Creative Economy, Diaspora Roundtables, Cultural ownership, Creative hubs, African innovation, Sustainable growth, Arts and culture in Africa, Creative ecosystems

Ahead of the Diaspora Roundtables, I visited Jambo Spaces in Accra to understand what sustainable creative infrastructure looks like in practice. Built and owned by Africans for African creatives, Jambo offers a clear example of how access, permanence, and local control allow creative economies to move beyond moments into systems.

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Creative Economy, Cultural Infrastructure, Africa & Diaspora, Creative Leadership, Urban Culture
Ghana, Jambo Spaces, African creatives, Creative Infrastructure, Creative Economy, African Creative Economy, Diaspora Roundtables, Cultural ownership, Creative hubs, African innovation, Sustainable growth, Arts and culture in Africa, Creative ecosystems
The GTBank Concert, Accra — Scale, Sound, Safety, and the Infrastructure Questions We Need to Answer
Live Music & Festivals, Cultural Infrastructure, African Cultural Infrastructure
Ghana, GT Bank Concert, Festivals & Live Music, Crowd Safety, Festival Planning, Detty December, Cultural Leadership, Stadium Shows, Touring, Creative Economy
The GTBank Concert, Accra — Scale, Sound, Safety, and the Infrastructure Questions We Need to Answer
Live Music & Festivals, Cultural Infrastructure, African Cultural Infrastructure
Ghana, GT Bank Concert, Festivals & Live Music, Crowd Safety, Festival Planning, Detty December, Cultural Leadership, Stadium Shows, Touring, Creative Economy

Accra has proven it can gather people at scale. The GTBank concert made that undeniable. A free stadium show, tens of thousands in attendance, and a city operating at full cultural intensity.

But scale increases responsibility proportionally. Crowd safety, infrastructure, and operational discipline are no longer secondary concerns. They are the difference between moments and systems.

What happens next will determine whether Accra’s cultural dominance translates into sustainable growth, or remains a seasonal peak without the structures to carry it forward.

Read More →
Live Music & Festivals, Cultural Infrastructure, African Cultural Infrastructure
Ghana, GT Bank Concert, Festivals & Live Music, Crowd Safety, Festival Planning, Detty December, Cultural Leadership, Stadium Shows, Touring, Creative Economy
December in Ghana: Culture, Scale, and the Work of Legacy
Culture & Creative Economy, African Cultural Infrastructure, Media & Interviews
Afro Nation, Detty December, Ghana, Channel One TV, African Creative Economy, Cultural Infrastructure, Culture & Legacy, Festivals & Live Music, Diaspora Culture, Systems & Scale, Cultural Leadership
December in Ghana: Culture, Scale, and the Work of Legacy
Culture & Creative Economy, African Cultural Infrastructure, Media & Interviews
Afro Nation, Detty December, Ghana, Channel One TV, African Creative Economy, Cultural Infrastructure, Culture & Legacy, Festivals & Live Music, Diaspora Culture, Systems & Scale, Cultural Leadership

Yesterday, I joined Channel One TV in Accra for a conversation about Afro Nation, December in Ghana, and the work that follows moments of cultural growth.

When culture grows faster than structure, the task is not to slow culture down. The task is to build fast enough to hold it.

Legacy is not presence. It is what remains because something once passed through.

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Culture & Creative Economy, African Cultural Infrastructure, Media & Interviews
Afro Nation, Detty December, Ghana, Channel One TV, African Creative Economy, Cultural Infrastructure, Culture & Legacy, Festivals & Live Music, Diaspora Culture, Systems & Scale, Cultural Leadership
On Scale, Systems, and Why Talent Alone Isn’t Enough
Journal, Creative Economy, Infrastructure & Touring
Creative Infrastructure, Global Scaling, Touring, Ecosystems, Cultural Economy, Artists, Promoters, Venues, Media & Platforms, Africa, Diaspora
On Scale, Systems, and Why Talent Alone Isn’t Enough
Journal, Creative Economy, Infrastructure & Touring
Creative Infrastructure, Global Scaling, Touring, Ecosystems, Cultural Economy, Artists, Promoters, Venues, Media & Platforms, Africa, Diaspora

Most artists don’t fail globally because of talent. They fail because the system around them is weak.

We celebrate breakout moments, viral records, sold-out shows, international co-signs and call that success. But moments are not systems. And moments, on their own, don’t last. Culture scales through planning, partnerships, and accountability, not hype.

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Journal, Creative Economy, Infrastructure & Touring
Creative Infrastructure, Global Scaling, Touring, Ecosystems, Cultural Economy, Artists, Promoters, Venues, Media & Platforms, Africa, Diaspora
Beyond Detty December: Creative Economy as Infrastructure
Cultural Infrastructure
Cultural Infrastructure, Creative Economy, African Creative Economy, Diaspora & Development, Detty December, Diaspora Investment, Ownership & Governance
Beyond Detty December: Creative Economy as Infrastructure
Cultural Infrastructure
Cultural Infrastructure, Creative Economy, African Creative Economy, Diaspora & Development, Detty December, Diaspora Investment, Ownership & Governance

Detty December proved demand.
What it didn’t build was the system.

Beyond Detty December is an intentional conversation about what happens after the spotlight moves on — when attention fades, and only infrastructure determines what remains.

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Cultural Infrastructure
Cultural Infrastructure, Creative Economy, African Creative Economy, Diaspora & Development, Detty December, Diaspora Investment, Ownership & Governance
The GTBank Concert, Accra — Scale, Sound, Safety, and the Infrastructure Questions We Need to Answer
Live Music & Festivals, Cultural Infrastructure, African Cultural Infrastructure Korrine Sky Live Music & Festivals, Cultural Infrastructure, African Cultural Infrastructure Korrine Sky

The GTBank Concert, Accra — Scale, Sound, Safety, and the Infrastructure Questions We Need to Answer

Accra has proven it can gather people at scale. The GTBank concert made that undeniable. A free stadium show, tens of thousands in attendance, and a city operating at full cultural intensity.

But scale increases responsibility proportionally. Crowd safety, infrastructure, and operational discipline are no longer secondary concerns. They are the difference between moments and systems.

What happens next will determine whether Accra’s cultural dominance translates into sustainable growth, or remains a seasonal peak without the structures to carry it forward.

Read More