Wizkid: Why singer cannot release music officially in Nigeria as an independent artist

Wizkid has a record deal that means all of his ‘official’ releases worldwide has to be vetted, sanctioned, released and sold through Sony Music.

Have you ever noticed how none of Wizkid’s latest ‘Nigerian’ songs are sold on all streaming platforms? It’s because he has no right to do so.

Wizkid cannot release and sell Nigerian music in Nigeria due to his Sony deal. The singer signed a huge record contract with Sony Music and is distributed in the US by RCA Records, a subsidiary of Sony. This means they hold control over his ‘official’ music releases.

Check out his release strategy. Since Wizkid signed the deal in 2016, all of his energy has been focused on creating content in foreign markets. ‘Daddy Yo’ launched the deal, and ‘Come Closer’ followed the record, with a Drake feature doing it nicely for Wizzy, Sony and everyone else who has a stake in his career.

 

A record deal is a contract/agreement between a record company and an artist/composer which gives the record company rights over the music made by an artist. In simple terms, a record deal is a partnership between a record company and an artist. The artist makes the music, and the record label sells it to the people.

Wizkid has a record deal that means all of his ‘official’ releases worldwide has to be vetted, sanctioned, released and sold through Sony Music. His album, “Sounds From The Other Side,” was an official release of RCA Records. It this this project that they are throwing their huge promotional weight behind globally. This means that Wizkid cannot make another record and sell it. He signed that right away when he agreed to a deal.

 

It is this same reason why Davido complained about his deal with Sony. The singer’s original deal meant that he lost the right to start up records locally in 2016. But after the flop of his EP, “Son Of Mercy,” the singer renegotiated the deal, which gave him the creative control over Africa. He can start records in Africa, under Sony Music Entertainment international. ‘If’, ‘Fall’, and ‘FIA’, his three singles in 2017 were released under Sony. If you missed, check his release credits. It’s all ‘back to the basics’.

Wizkid does not have that. Sony has to be in charge of everything.

After the SFTOS album, Starboy has been working hard at releasing music. He has dropped ‘Medicine’, and a remix with Flavour and Phyno. None of those songs is on any streaming platform, except for Soundcloud, where it is offered for free streaming. His single with Future, ‘Everytime’ cannot be sold too. Sony didn’t put their weight behind it, hence it is on Soundcloud as a free record.

 

A great way to circumvent this deal is collaboration. The deal gives the artist the freedom to collaborate. During the duration of Davido’s original Sony deal, he had to release his music under the name of his record label, DMW, and featured on it as a guest artist alongside his signees. That’s why you have DMW as a group in ‘Back 2 Back’, and ‘Prayer’.

Wizkid’s latest solo single is titled ‘Manya’, but he cannot release it with his chest. The official title says it is a song by ‘MUT4Y’, one half of his production-affiliates, Legendury Beatz. The song itself is produced by Killertunes, and released under his Starboy imprint to which Mutay is signed. The video has been shot, and will drop soon.

This means, Wizkid gets to drop a record by cleverly going around his Sony deal. Mutay gets his name out, and everyone is happy. But a new Wizkid record will not be sold on an official platform, unless it is released through Sony.

Clever, right?