Kenyan rapper Bamboo wins protracted copyright lawsuit

According to the reports, Bamboo filed a civil suit in late 2015 accusing the three organisations for using three of his songs without consent and failing to pay him his dues. The tracks in question are ‘Mama Africa’, ‘Yes Indeed’ and ‘Move On’ featuring Camp Mulla.

The lawsuit arose from the use of the three songs on Safaricom’s ringback tone service Skiza Tunes, with the artists suing for loss of income. Skiza Tunes allows phone users to download a song that is used in place of caller ringtone, with a royalty going to the artist.

The Daily Nation quoted Nairobi High Court judge Asenath Nyaboke as ruling: “I find that the first, second and third defendants did not avail the records of how much they earned from the plaintiff’s musical works. I assess general damages for infringement of right of Ksh1.5m per song in respect of musical works ‘Mama Africa’, ‘Yes Indeed’ and ‘Move On’.” 

The two PRSPs reportedly argued that they had been authorised by the Music Copyright Society of Kenya (MCSK) to supply the aforementioned songs to Skiza Tunes. However, the MCSK admitted to making a mistake when Bamboo had raised the matter and paid him Ksh600 000 for ‘Mama Africa’ and ‘Yes Indeed’.

Born Simon Kimani, Bamboo was one-half of Kenyan hip hop duo K-South, which is known for its playful but hard-hitting social commentary. The artist, who has since transitioned from secular music to gospel, is best known for his track ‘Usilete Compe’, which was released in 2005 to massive success. The song has been described as “a timeless anthem from the golden age of Kenyan hip hop.”