Tuma Basa Officially Joins YouTube as Director of Urban Music
Former Spotify global programming head of hip-hop Tuma Basa has officially joined YouTube as director of urban music, the company confirmed on Friday (June 1).
Former Spotify global programming head of hip-hop Tuma Basa has officially joined YouTube as director of urban music, the company confirmed on Friday (June 1).
Basa’s move to YouTube was first reported in May, but YouTube would not comment at the time. Now a rep tells Billboard Basa will lead activities that draw on his deep industry connections and expertise in programming to increase engagement with the urban music community, artists and consumers.
“Tuma brings a deep knowledge of the Music Industry with many years of experience at BET, MTV, REVOLT and most recently, Spotify,” said YouTube’s global head of music Lyor Cohen in a statement. “His experience will be invaluable to the music journey we are on at YouTube, connecting artists and fans across the globe, and I am thrilled to welcome his voice to our collective efforts.”
The formal announcement of Basa’s move comes following the launch of the new YouTube Music streaming service last week.
While with Spotify, Basa made a name for himself curating the wildly popular RapCaviar playlist — the format’s most popular genre-specific playlist — which as of his departure in May had amassed nearly 9 million followers and has expanded into live touring.