Ghana’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Papa Owusu-Ankomah was in shock after Stonebwoy revealed he has received only GHC 2,000 as royalties from the Ghana Music Rights Organisers.
According to the award-winning Ghanaian Reggae/ Dancehall artiste, the GHC2000 royalties is all he has received despite his many years in the industry releasing popular songs.
The “Activate” hitmaker, who is currently in the United Kingdom, revealed this in a meeting with Ghana’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Papa Owusu-Ankomah.
“Me I’m telling you on camera. This is Stonebwoy. The amount I have ever gotten from making music as royalties in Ghana is GHC 2000. I’m being honest. A lot of other artists are having the same problem,” Stonebwoy said to a shocked Papa Owusu-Ankomah.
Papa Owusu-Ankomah then asked; “What about all your songs that are being played on the radio almost every day?”.
Stonebwoy replied “I’m being honest, put me to it, and let’s have this conversation. The conversation is big in Ghana. They know it”.
Stonebwoy further revealed that he’s been to the Ghana Music Rights Organization (GHAMRO) to demand royalties due him to no avail.
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The Ghana Music Rights Organization (GHAMRO) was established under section 49 of the Copyright Law, Act 690 of 2005 and regulated under L.I. 1962 of 2010 to collect and distribute royalties on behalf of authors/composers and other rights owners.
However, there have been several complaints by a lot of Musicians that the monies they receive as royalties do not reflect the amount of work they put into their craft.
Back in June, Award-winning Gospel artiste, Diana Hamilton, who has five albums to her credit, revealed in an interview on Asaase radio that she barely gets any royalties in Ghana.
“My songs are done, being used, blessing people here in Ghana and I’m collecting my royalty from abroad, I barely get anything from here [Ghana],” Diana said in the interview.
Meanwhile, as musicians continue to mount pressure on the leaders of GHAMRO to give them their due royalties, the Public Relations Officer for the Ghana Music Rights Organization (GHAMRO), Prince Tsegah has stated that a proper royalty system is not easy to set up as people think.
“The royalties system is not too easy to put up, the blank levy isn’t working out, because nobody is using CDs any longer, nobody is using cassette and the importation is minimal or absent, now we are into pen drives, phones and hard disc etc., and the law hasn’t been amended to include those, so those monies we are not getting,” he noted.
