(OPINION) On The Mercy Chinwo And Eezee Tee Matter

By Kelvin Alaneme

On this Mercy Chinwo and EezeeTee matter, the truth is hidden in what both of them are leaving unsaid.

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐞𝐠𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬:

In an emotional video, Mercy has alleged that the record label boss bullied her and stopped her royalties payment for two years. She alleged he sponsored bloggers to spread the rumours that “Nathaniel Bassey fathered her child.” She said he was angry that she did a song with Nathaniel Bassey and that she was associating with Jerry Eze and people EezeeTee hated. She also alleged that EezeeTee altered the terms of their contract without her knowledge.
EezeeTee has accused Mercy of breaching her contracts several times and diverting funds from performing engagements. He alleged that Mercy petitioned the EFCC and $274,000 was extorted from him. He alleged that Mercy was trying to use law enforcement to bully him into transferring the Masters of her recordings over to her while the contract stated that it belongs in perpetuity to the label.

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐬:

The pair – Mercy Chinwo and EezeeTee – began well, their relationship more like that of father and daughter.
EezeeTee invested and contributed significantly to the growth of Mercy Chinwo brand.
Mercy Chinwo was entitled to 50/50 split of gross revenue as royalties.

Note that this is one of the most generous splits you can find anywhere. This means that of all monies that come in, after the label has removed amount spent on production, videos and all, Mercy still gets to keep 50%.

Normal industry standard is usually 70/30 or 80/20 with the bulk of the funds going to the label who continues to invest into the artistes’ growth.

Mercy Chinwo has some of her bookings paid into her own bank accounts.

Now, this in itself is not a breach of her contract if it is agreed and she remitted the label’s share. It becomes a breach when she refuses to remit the share of performance earnings.

This may also be why Mercy is talking about her royalties not being paid for two years. Does this give you the right to divert funds into your own personal account?

EezeeTee has asked that Mercy provide her bank details for an audit about booking fees that went into it. Nothing has been said about that.

EezeeTee has also said that Mercy has gotten royalties to the tune of $625,000 till date. The actual amount has not been disputed. An audit will throw more light on whether some funds were withheld on account of contract breach or all were remitted.

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐢𝐬𝐬𝐮𝐞𝐬:

When Mercy said she signed a contract in 2017 and did not get a copy of what she signed till 5 years later, I found it laughable. Even if it is only your signature that is there, you should be able to produce the original copy that you signed so we can compare and contrast with any ‘doctored’ copy.
Again, if you want to go by the story that the document was ‘forged’ and therefore no longer binding – which is a sly way of saying that you did not breach what was ‘non-existent’ – which contract entitled you to all the royalties you have been collecting? Same ‘fraudulent’ one? Are you ready to return all the funds remitted to you?

You cannot quote a contract when it favours you and disparage the same contract when it does not favour you.

It is industry standard in many record contracts that Masters are owned in perpetuity by the labels. This is the label’s leverage and a hedge on their investment. Banky W’s EME owns the Masters of Wizkid’s first two albums in perpetuity. Forever.

Can this be negotiated to revert to the artiste? Yes. Especially if the artiste is successful and has helped the label recoup their initial investment. But, it is at the discretion of the label.

If the label wants to entertain such a discussion, it often involves the artiste buying back their Masters for a pricey sum. If the label refuses to sell, there is nothing you can do unless you go and re-record all the songs again – just like Taylor Swift did (she tagged hers ‘Taylor’s version’).

If it was stated clearly in the contract she signed, then, Mercy Chinwo’s Masters are owned by EezeeTee in perpetuity and no amount of emotional blackmail or pressure can change this. If she wants it, she needs to have that conversation and bring out funds to buy it back. This is how it works.

Dragging Nathaniel Bassey into this was unnecessary. To think of it, doing a song with Nathaniel Bassey – which will be a hit song – benefits the label. It is a good business decision and I cannot, for the life of me, see why a label owner can turn down such a money-spinning opportunity.

We were all here on social media when some people made those unfortunate comments about Mercy’s child “looking like Nathaniel.” While the blogs amplified those comments, those individuals eventually apologised.

Turning around and pointing the smoking gun at EezeeTee is ridiculous and unless Mercy has concrete evidence about this, she is opening herself up to a defamation lawsuit.

Signing a record deal is not joining cult. It is obvious the relationship between Mercy Chinwo and EezeeTee has broken down irretrievably. According to EezeeTee, Mercy is yet to fulfil one of the terms of her contract – a third album, but a lot of bad blood has been exchanged.

A contract extension is not compulsory. There are always means to resolve contract breaches and the extant issues raised. I believe both parties have sued each other.

It is unfortunate it has to come to this. But, all is not lost yet. An out-of-court mediation can be arranged before both parties do irreparable damage to their legacies.

A lot of persons cheering both parties on social media are unaware of the implications.

If this matter goes to court, the label can stop Mercy from performing all the songs which they have ownership of pending the outcome of the case.

She may have to go under a new name and record new songs which she can perform.

Label issues and litigation dealt a huge blow to Runtown’s career.

Na label issues and litigation make Kiss Daniel become Kizz Daniel.

It can stunt a career if it is not properly managed.

Hoping for a more amicable resolution that is fair to both parties. 🙏🏽❤️

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