Veritatis Gaudium: Multidisciplinary Journal of Postgraduate Studies

The study addressed the urgent gap in understanding how Nigerian music traditions are sustained within rapidly expanding digital ecosystems, where uneven access and fragmented documentation have limited long term cultural preservation. It examined this problem by analysing 1,240 digital items drawn from music platforms, policy documents, academic sources, and global heritage archives using a desk based qualitative design that combined digital documentary analysis, non-participatory digital ethnography, and metadata analytics. The analysis identified three key patterns. First, 62 percent of sampled recordings lacked complete metadata, reducing searchability and long term discoverability. Second, algorithmic visibility was uneven, with traditional genres appearing 2.1 times less frequently in recommendation pathways than contemporary Nigerian music. Third, only 18 percent of national policy documents contained explicit digital preservation strategies. The study contributed a structured digital access model that strengthens cultural transmission, supports policy reform, and reframes digital heritage as a critical pathway for sustaining Nigerian music traditions in the twenty first century.

Open Full Text (PDF)