Jerusalema song hitmaker Master KG, through the Open Mic Productions record label, has released a statement addressing allegations by co-writer of the mega hit Nomcebo Zikode.
Nomcebo took to her social media pages on Sunday claiming that she had been betrayed by the record label accusing it of failing to pay her her share of the royalties as had been agreed upon earlier.
The South African breakaway artiste complained that she had not received a single penny alleging that only Master KG had benefited from the millions of Rand the song had generated since going global, and becoming the soundtrack of the pandemic in 2020.
“My voice and lyrics have transcended globally, but I still await what is due to me, I have not been paid a cent by the label for Jerusalema despite the song’s global success. I have been ridiculed, with efforts to marginalise my contribution. The continued love and support from the fans of Jerusalema has been my strength and anchor during this difficult time.” She said in a statement.
The singer's record label, Open Mic Productions, released a statement refuting claims of paying Master KG and leaving out Nomcebo.
The lable claims, in the statement, that it had drafted an agreement for the two to settle on how to equally share earnings from the hit song but Nomcebo allegedly demanded a higher share.
Since then, according to the label, the papers remain unsigned and none of the artistes had been paid yet.
“We note the utterances made by our artist Nomcebo Zikode on social media in regard to payment for her featured artist role in the song Jerusalema by Master KG. Whilst we do not make a habit of discussing our artist’s contractual matters to the public, Nomcebo’s utterances cannot be left uncorrected,” the statement read.
It continued, “We can confirm that during the creation of the song that Master Kg (the main Artist) and Nomcebo Zikode (the featured Artist) agreed on sharing 50/50 of Master KG's earnings. The featured artist’s agreement which reflected an equal split between the two artists was drafted last year November for both parties to sign. Nomcebo Zikode through her legal team reviewed the contract and proposed for a higher percentage.”
Open Mic Productions further noted that they had been in communication with her over the signing of the papers.
“Since then, there have been back-and-forth engagements. We also confirm that the last communication with Nomcebo’s Legal team regarding her negotiation of the contract in question was on the 19th of June 2021,” the statement went on.
The statement further confirmed that neither of the artistes had received a penny from the song.
“No payment has been made to either artist as yet because Nomcebo Zikode is yet to sign the Featured Artist Agreement that essentially records what was agreed between herself and Master KG prior to the both of them going into the studio, to record Jerusalema.
“This is the agreement that stipulates amongst other matters, what percentage of Master KG’s artist royalties is payable to Nomcebo for her role as a featured artist in the song.”
The record label assured that the artistes would receive their payments immediately after they come into a mutual agreement.
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