Veteran Nigerian musician, Paul Play Dairo has shared his struggles with receiving royalties since leaving Kennis Music.
During a conversation on the Afrobeats Podcast, the singer talked about the difficulties he’s faced, especially with the lack of strong intellectual property protections in Nigeria.
Paul Play Dairo explained that some of his songs are missing from streaming platforms due to the terms of his past contract, which prevent him from uploading those tracks.
The music star also revealed that he hasn’t received any royalties since parting ways with Kennis Music.
He explained that certain parties have been reluctant to engage in discussions that could resolve these issues.
The singer and producer also addressed the frequent unauthorized sampling of his music by other artists.
Paul Play recalled an incident when he sued MTN for using one of his songs in an advertisement without his permission.
“I received a lot of insults when I sued MTN. I was accused of being broke and not wanting the younger generation to grow,” he shared, reflecting on the criticism he received for taking legal action.
Paul noted that songs like “Forever,” “Angel of My Life,” and “Mosorire” have been sampled many times, often without his approval.
While he chose not to name all the artists involved, he mentioned that Blaqbonez had sampled his work on the track “Loyalty” from the album “Young Preacher”, which was eventually taken down from streaming platforms due to copyright issues.
Watch the video below:
Meanwhile Nigerian disc jockey DJ Neptune has denied allegations of defrauding rapper and BBNaija winner, Laycon, over unpaid royalties.
