Abraham Adjetey, the CEO of the Ghana Music Rights Organization (GHAMRO), has reacted to Stonebwoy’s claim that his outfit has given GHc 2000 as royalties.
Stonebwoy days ago in a meeting with Ghana’s High Commissioner to the UK, Paapa Owusu Ankomah revealed that he has only received a small GH$2000 as royalties from GHAMRO.
READ ALSO: The money I’ve received as royalties in Ghana from GHAMRO is GHc2000 – Stonebwoy
At that meeting, he said, “the amount I have ever gotten as music royalties in Ghana is ¢2,000. I am being honest, and I swear on the grave of my mother. They do not pay us, and I am stating this on camera. The conversation is big in Ghana, and everybody knows”.
He further stated, “the cheque I have ever received from GHAMRO is ¢2,000. It is not by force to go on a tour and perform that is not obligatory. But as musicians, we do not make money from our intellectual property.”
Stonebwoy who is unhappy about the amount received advised that GHAMRO step up their game if indeed they are concerned about the welfare of artists and the proper monetization of their intellectual property.
Reacting to the claim by the Bhim Nation president, GHAMRO has asked him to update his records since his claim that he has received only GH¢2000 in royalties may not be entirely true.
Abraham Adjetey believes that because musicians and content creators want to profit from their intellectual property, they should also recognize that Ghana’s economy is not as developed as that of other Western countries.
He believes that digitization will aid in addressing current challenges, but that a gradual transition is also necessary.
According to him, GHAMRO is only allowed to hold 30 per cent of the stock.
“We sent Stonebwoy a thousand, then another thousand, which is why he mentioned 2,000. He is now responsible for following up and updating his records.
If you have money for Stonebwoy today and I don’t have his bank account information, where should I send it? If there is money for Stonebwoy, it will be in GHAMRO’s accounts.
According to the website of the royalties collection agency, it is a non-profit corporate body (limited by guarantee), and thus all fees collected are distributed among the right owners whose works have been used, in this case, composers, authors, and producers, and publishers in proportion to the use made of their works.
“Recently, we had a meeting with him, and he indicated that he would send someone. In fact, we took some pictures outside, but no one has returned to date.”
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