Copyright Belongs To Songwriters – John Kay Weighs In On Music Ownership
Artistic creative and composer John Kay The Writer has weighed in on the ongoing debate about copyright ownership in Uganda’s music industry, emphasizing that songwriters and producers remain the rightful owners of most successful musical works.
According to John Kay, nearly 90% of hit songs in Uganda are still legally owned by the songwriters and producers who created them, with artists only receiving licenses to perform and commercially exploit the music.
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Learn MoreIn Uganda, for 90% of successful songs, the songwriters still own the copyright; they only license their work. We are not selfish as writers, and we don’t mind being silent millionaires.
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He compared copyright to land ownership, arguing that intellectual property deserves the same level of respect and protection.
The way to transfer copyright is through licensing. A song is like land—it’s intellectual property and should be treated with the same respect as land.
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John Kay further noted that one of the biggest challenges in Uganda’s music industry is the failure to properly recognize the economic contribution of songwriters.
He explained that simply mentioning a songwriter’s name in a song or album credits is not enough.
He argued that artists should ensure writers are compensated in a way that reflects the value of their creative input.
The challenge we’ve got in our nation is that we major in the minors and minor in the majors. As a songwriter, when you write a song for a musician, it’s the musicians responsibility to recognize your contribution—not just by mentioning your name, but in a way that makes economic sense.
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It is an artist’s responsibility to recognize every contribution.- Jay the writer #NBSAfter5 #NBSUpdates pic.twitter.com/HVVzTbJM3K
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