Afrobeat

noun

Af·​ro·​beat ˈa-frō-ˌbēt 

: urban popular music originating in Nigeria in the late 1960s that emphasizes percussion rhythms and features elements of jazz and funk and lyrics which are often strongly political

Examples of Afrobeat in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The song, built on a foundation of amapiano — a subgenre of South African house music — but infused with pop and R&B melodies and accented by elements of Afrobeats, was unlike anything else on pop radio at the time. —Thania Garcia, Variety, 6 Aug. 2025

Martell has long championed freedom, audacity and excellence, and is continuing its cultural journey by shining a spotlight on the people and platforms shaping Afrobeats from within. —Nkosiyati Khumalo, Billboard, 6 Aug. 2025

Jamaican dancehall artist Baby Cham and a slate of international DJ mixmasters will inspire throwback vibes with their fusions of hip-hop, reggae, dancehall, R&B, pop, rock, Afrobeat, Haitian kompa and soul. —Greg Carannante, Sun Sentinel, 16 July 2025

Bieber’s catalogue is searching and uneven, flitting between glossy renditions of trap-pop, mid-tempo R. & B., eighties new wave, campfire Christian sing-alongs, Afrobeat, and dancehall, his slick, supple voice skimming the surface of these styles while never committing to any of them. —Brady Brickner-Wood, New Yorker, 16 July 2025

Word History

Etymology

afro- + beat entry 2

First Known Use

1969, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for Afrobeat

• bittersweet
• celestite
• incomplete
• indiscreet
• marguerite
• obsolete
• overeat
• overheat
• parakeet
• stillingfleet
• superheat
• amit