Award-winning singer Ami Faku is taking authorized motion in opposition to her supervisor, Raphael Benza, and his document label, Vth Season, accusing them of withholding royalties and failing to keep up transparency of their monetary dealings.
The Imali hitmaker has approached the Johannesburg Excessive Court docket, demanding that Benza disclose detailed accounting data and settle excellent funds owed to her.
Faku claims she was taken benefit of as a younger Black lady within the business, pointing to what she describes as exploitative contracts and disorganized, incomplete royalty statements that left her earnings unclear.
“I used to be exploited as a younger Black feminine artist,” she reportedly said, highlighting how the monetary reviews supplied had been too disjointed to supply any actual readability.
Including to her frustrations, Faku revealed she personally spent over R400,000 to supply her debut album Imali and is now searching for full possession of its grasp recordings.
Past the monetary dispute, she can also be asking the court docket to dissolve all present agreements with Benza and Vth Season, together with her artist, administration, and publishing contracts.
Faku’s authorized battle additionally touches on a broader subject throughout the business, as she accuses Benza of a troubling sample of focusing on younger Black feminine artists for private achieve.
The case has sparked discussions about accountability and equity in South Africa’s music scene.
