Mavin Records celebrated their 4th year anniversary this May. The Nigerian record label founded and owned by Don Jazzy is now one of the best in Nigeria and hosts musicians D’Prince, Tiwa Savage, Korede Bello, Dr Sid, Reekado Banks and Di’ja. All in just four years… but how did they get here?

It has been a mixture of quality music, good PR and clever use of social media. Almost all Mavin releases are hits. Seemingly, it is quality over quantity.

While the Supreme Mavins Dynasty (or SMD as they sometimes call themselves) comprises talented artists, the creative genius of Don Jazzy cannot be overemphasized. The other two in-house producers Babyfresh and Altims are also good at what they do.

Then the artists. From the melodies of Korede Bello, Di’ja and Tiwa Savage to the creativity of Reekado Banks, D’Prince and Dr Sid, SMD have it all.

Mavin Records has crafted a good digital strategy that clearly puts it above the rest. The artists individually have an impressive following on social media, something that is essential in scoring those big endorsement deals.

Also, the label ensures that every record released is well promoted. For example, they compiled fan-made clips of Korede’s “God Win” before the official video was released. That was clever!

The record label may continue to be this dominant as long as they ensure that their strategies are still rock-solid, and change with times. Currently, they face increasing competition from the likes of Olamide’s YBNL and Tripple MG (a.k.a. Made Men Music Group).

All said, I think whoever will win the battle is the one who’s able to amass and engage the most fans online.