Wande Coal, who was previously signed with Mo’Hits records, and operated on a verbal contract with Mavin Records, finally left the aforementioned labels to do his own thing. Long time AML readers know that when all of the crises went down with the prior labels, I wrote here on AML that Wande Coal needed to be his own man and create and walk his own path. It seemed like the most logical thing to do.
Some years later, he has done just that and remerges with a new album titled ‘Wanted.’ What’s particularly interesting is how much the industry, fans and media are embracing his music. In addition, he has now signed a deal with Guaranty Trust (GT) Bank, one of Nigeria and Africa’s leading banks, and, for the record, makes it clear Don Jazzy (CEO of Mavin Records and former owner of Mo’Hits) “did not make him.”
Where are my AML music business folks? I am intrigued with the continued increase and shift where telecommunication companies appear to be playing the role of record labels in Nigeria. It is almost as if you don’t really need the labels anymore, in terms of the way these deals are executed. Now, I do realize Wande Coal owns his own label. Nevertheless, majority of the industry, it seems, now makes majority of its monies from endorsement deals from these telecommunication companies, and now banks are jumping in.
So my question to you AML music business heads is as follows: do you think the current business model where artists make majority of their monies from endorsement deals is a problem? If so, why?
NOTE: I deliberately excluded the live performance fees that have traditionally been the sole source of income for our artists; as I believe there is a drastic shift towards what I describe above.
-Ms. Uduak
