Building Africa's Live Entertainment Future

Mudder Fracas PODCAST EP007

We're happy to share the latest episode of Mudder Fracas, a podcast we're proud to support as an official partner.

This time, Yaw Asamani is joined by Peng Chen, co-founder and CEO of HustleSasa, a company building ticketing, payments, marketing, data and other infrastructure for live entertainment across Africa. The company is also backed by Best Nights VC, the venture capital arm of Jägermeister focused on the future of nightlife and live entertainment.

Born in China, raised in the United States and now based in Nairobi, Peng describes himself as a two-time immigrant. His journey has taken him through consulting, emerging markets, Rocket Internet and Easy Taxi before leading him to build businesses across entertainment, technology and culture in Africa.

The conversation explores what it actually takes to build a live entertainment economy in markets where much of the infrastructure is still developing, from ticketing and touring to MMA, creative industries and the future of live experiences in the age of generative AI.

A few topics from the episode

• Why streaming numbers don't necessarily translate into ticket buyers
• The challenges of touring across African markets
• Why live experiences may become even more valuable in the age of generative AI
• Why HustleSasa decided to build its own MMA promotion
• Building infrastructure while helping create the market itself
• Entrepreneurship, immigration, identity, and making Africa home
• Peng's ambition to reach 18 African cities across 18 markets by 2030

Watch on YouTube

Listen on Spotify

About Mudder Fracas

Mudder Fracas explores the people, ideas, and technology shaping the future of the creative industries. As a podcast partner, we're excited to help bring these conversations to more founders, builders, and creators.

Enjoy the episode. More conversations are on the way.