Spotify has opened the Greasy Tunes Café Kitchen in Nairobi in partnership with The BAG, marking the start of a 12-day pop-up that runs from July 15 to July 26 at Heltz House, the company said in a media statement dated July 16, 2026.
According to Spotify, the Nairobi activation is the third edition of Greasy Tunes after Johannesburg in 2023 and Lagos in 2025. The company said the concept is built around curated food and community-led programming that links music discovery with local cultural experiences.
The opening night was co-led by The BAG, which Spotify described as a Nairobi events and nightlife platform. Spotify said the launch was designed around how young Nairobi residents gather “around food, sound, conversation and community,” with street food culture positioned as a central theme.
Spotify said the café kitchen was created in partnership with Jikoni Studio Nairobi, and that the menu was developed “alongside local Kenyan chefs.” The company added that the food offering is intended to reflect Kenyan street food culture within a venue built for music and community programming.
The programme includes collaborations with local creative communities and event brands, including Studio 18, The BAG, BluePrint, Fishermans Experience, Bambika TV, Assembly, Ongeza Volume, Standup Collective, Nakili Session and Strictly Soul. Spotify said the calendar will also feature two live podcast recordings from Mic Cheque Podcast and 30 Percent Podcast.
Spotify said its internal listening data informs the concept’s focus on food-related moments. “Spotify listening data from June 2026 shows that for Nairobi listeners aged 18 to 24, the dinner-adjacent window between 6pm and 9pm is the largest food-related listening period in the dataset, accounting for 20.9% of all daily Gen Z music listening in the city,” the company said.
Agnes Opondo, Artist and Label Partnerships, East Africa at Spotify, said the data points to a blended local-and-global listening pattern among young users. “What stands out in this data is not just that Kenyan artists dominate the dinner playlist, but that they sit naturally alongside names like Dave, Tems and Drake. That tells you something about how young Nairobians experience music. They are not choosing between local and global. They are moving between both in the same evening, and Kenyan artists are holding their own in that mix. For anyone working with East African talent, that is a powerful signal,” Ms Opondo said.
Spotify also disclosed that Kenyan artists appear on seven of the top ten tracks streamed by Nairobi’s 18–24 listeners during the 6pm to 9pm window, led by Ywaya Tajiri, and including Wakadinali, Mutoriah, Toxic Lyrikali, Sauti Sol and Njerae. The company added that regional collaboration also featured in the same listening mix, citing Alikiba and Bien, alongside international acts.
For Kenya’s creative economy, the activation signals continued competition among global platforms for mindshare in local music and youth culture—an audience segment that is increasingly central to marketing budgets across telecommunications, consumer goods, hospitality and live entertainment. Pop-up experiences that blend music, food and community events also reflect a wider trend among brands seeking offline engagement to complement digital consumption, particularly in Nairobi’s nightlife and events sector.
Spotify said it is working with 12 communities and partners to host 20 events over the 12 days, spanning “food and music to podcasts, comedy, sport, fashion and live cultural programming.” The company did not disclose financial terms or expected attendance figures.
The pop-up is scheduled to conclude on July 26, with Spotify indicating that Greasy Tunes is positioned as a multi-city series, following previous editions in South Africa and Nigeria.