Some may think he is not qualified to give upcoming Nigerian entertainers advice on how best to sign contracts, especially considering the controversies that trailed his falling out with former record label mate and friend [Harrysongs] who departed from Five Star Music last year. Yet the controversies notwithstanding, Kcee has some solid advice as to how aspiring musicians can avoid the problems associated with misinterpreted contracts.
As reported by Naij.com, Kcee explained that many Nigerian artists end up battling with contractual problems because they do not bother to actually read their contracts before signing it. According to him, “A lot of artistes don’t bother to read contracts before signing it. They just put pen to paper without going through the documents to know whether they are okay with the terms and conditions of the deal. At that initial stage, many of the artistes are usually hungry and desperate and would practically beg to sign those contracts. Many of them are also not loyal as they just want to ride on the record label’s platform and money to promote their careers. When they find fame and make a lot of money, they begin to say that the contract is no longer workable for them. Most times, the artistes wouldn’t even call for re-negotiation of the contract, rather they would just abscond and things are not done that way,” he said.
Having said that, he therefore advised aspiring Nigerian artists to be careful when faced with the prospects of a likely record deal, saying -“I always advise artistes to study the contracts before signing it because once you put your signature on it, you are legally bound to comply with the terms of the contract, so far you were not made to sign it under duress. Promoting an artiste is very expensive and it usually takes time for record labels to recoup their investment. This is despite the massive risk that they take because there is no guarantee that the artiste would be successful. But most times, people don’t know what transpired between the parties involved before taking sides.”
Well now that you have heard it from the very mouth of Kcee who is quite a pro in the industry, it is safe to assume that many of you who are hoping to “blow”one day will put this mind when you finally get to sign those papers.