Hiplife legend Barima Sidney has revealed that Dr. Bawumia will not compensate DJ Azonto for using his song “Fa No Fom” during his campaign rally in the North-East Region.
Speaking in an interview on Property FM in Cape Coast, Barima Sidney mentioned that per the copyright law in Ghana, DJ Azonto will not receive any form of compensation from Dr. Bawumia.
“When a political party is doing a rally and they play your song on the platform while dancing to it, our law doesn’t say that they must pay you for it. Because it’s a song you’ve already released in the public domain, it’s like your song being played at someone’s birthday party and you asking for monetary compensation,” Sidney stated.
He further explained that if a political party however samples the song of an artiste, for advertisement on television or radio then they are liable to pay the artiste for compensation.
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“But when they take the song and cut it by using it for an advert and place it on TV or Radio jingle after sampling bits of it, as for that one, my lawyer told me they’d have to pay for using your song,” he said,” he added.
Barima Sidney’s revelations follow a statement released by DJ Azonto and his management team, Rolls Royce Royals on May 17, 2024. The statement demanded compensation of 10 million dollars from the National Patriotic Party flagbearer, for dancing to the ‘Fa No Fom” song.
According to Rolls Royce Royal, the song was used without their consent, making it a clear infringement of intellectual property rights.
” As the rightful managers of DJ Azonto’s work, we were neither approached for permission nor did we authorize the use of ‘Fa No Fom’ in any capacity related to the Vice President’s campaign. This action disregards the creative rights body and also the efforts of DJ Azonto and the Rolls Royce Royal Family management.
The management team also requested Dr Bawumia’s campaign to immediately address the issue and compensate them with $10 million in damages, although no lawsuit has been filed.
