Before we begin this tale, here are two damning quotes…
Kelly Handsome’s tweet on the 28
th of May, 2012, which goes thus:
twitter “I
trusted Kenny Ogungbe with my career but instead of showing me love as a
father, he cheated, scandalised and enslaved me, God forgive him.”
Now Muzik boss MR
EFE OMOROGBE said that Kenny Ogungbe has
not
done enough to fight the problems bedevilling the Nigerian music
industry and significantly weakened others who were hell bent on taking
on the problems…
2 quotes, both negative, both damning one man: Kenny Ogungbe!
We’ve heard whispers of the saga, and dismissed it as ‘
just rumours’,
but the rumour has refused to fade away, slowly gathering dust, voices,
and confirmations. So we’ve done our homework, and we bring you
confirmation that
Now Muzik CEO,
Efe Omorogbe and
Kennis Music CEO,
Kenny Ogungbe are at loggerheads. You can call it war (if drama is what you seek).
It all began at the Nigerian Entertainment Conference, organised by
private media house, Nigerian Entertainment Today, on Friday, April 26,
2013 at the Grand Ball Room, Eko Hotel. Kenny Ogungbe gave a speech on
the topic, ‘
Are Record Labels Endangered Species?’ Ogungbe
delivered an animated speech, delving along the lines of entertainment
history, revealing some insights into the workings of running a record
label.
But then, there was a lingering feeling among the audience that
Ogungbe didn’t do justice to the topic, but of all who shared that view,
there was one who felt a righteous need to take on Kenny.
His name is..
Efe Omorogbe, the CEO
Now Muzik, who earned his entertainment badges as a young rapper/ writer/ producer, writing as a an associate editor for
Hip-hop World magazine, producing under the pseudonym “Freak” and directed music videos for the likes of
Segun Obe, Slick, Sunny Neji, Komrayds, Sammie Needle, D’Lyte, NIG.G.A Raw and many others including the video to the Thoroughbred classic, “
Streethop” which got a Hip-Hip World Awards nomination. He later
Efe with the support of partner,
Tony Anifite
created Now Muzik, developed it into a formidable force and a major
player in the Nigerian entertainment scene providing business management
and/or label support services for some of the biggest names and
brightest new talents in the industry.
So we can all understand where he finds leverage to confront Kenny. It’s now switched from individualities to label vs label.
Kennis Music versus Now Muzik
Now, a man with a mission and a point to prove (or disprove?), Efe
Omorogbe of Now Muzik has challenged Kenny Ogungbe of Kennis Music to an
open session. According to the details from a rejoinder written by the
former, there was an ‘inconsistency between what Mr. Ogungbe’s written
speech conveyed and what his spontaneous comments/outbursts
communicated’.
*** RE: THERE SHOULD NOT BE PIRATES IN THE NAME OF COLLECTING
SOCIETIES – A REJOINDER TO KENNY OGUNGBE’s NEC SPEECH BY EFE OMOROGBE
Here’s his challenge, a full 2’460 worded challenge. Strap yourself in, get popcorn, because we’re going on a ride. Here we go:
When I learnt that Mr. Keke Ogungbe, founder/CEO of Kennis Music
was billed to speak on the topic: Are Record Labels Endangered Species?”
at the inaugural Nigeria Entertainment Conference, I wasn’t exactly
sure what to expect and it made all a bit more exciting.
I obviously had my opinion on the subject matter. Working with
artistes in management capacity and providing label support services to
the indie artist had made it quite clear that the label is a necessity
even with the advent of the digital era. To me, it was simply a question
of adaptability for the labels, the traditional need remains, it was
just the modus operandi that needed tweaking.
I was curious to find out Mr. Ogungbe’s perspective and
recommendations as to how the label can ensure its survival and
profitability. The speech, though highly informative and interesting
didn’t adequately address the topic in my opinion. More ink was
dedicated to an engaging historical exposition and general
music/entertainment industry issues than the meat of the session which
to me, was more about the status of the record label in a changing music
business environment.
For me, some of the core issues are thus:
a, If an artist can record, mix and
master a track on his laptop, produce a viral vid on the same device,
publish the audio and visual materials on youtube, promote via social
media and secure iTunes and Spinlet distribution by sending 3 emails and
possibly become a star, of what use is a label to such an artiste?
b, As digital distribution gradually
becomes the primary source of label revenue, how sustainable is a system
where a telco insists on an 80/20 rev share ratio with a VAS
company/aggregator which in turn, takes about half and leaves the label
with a paltry 10% to further split with the artiste?
c, If 60% of the current hit-makers are independent, what are the prospects for traditional labels? etc…
These and other questions were neither directly raised nor
addressed by Mr. Ogungbe’s paper but interestingly, that is not even the
reason for this rejoinder. My concern stems not from the issues that
weren’t treated but from some of the pious positions taken and
controversial comments made by Mr. Ogungbe during the session.
Mr. Ogungbe and I have had conversations on these industry issues
for the better part of 9 long years and we know each other’s
perspective and antecedents well enough. As I stated during the business
session, I have a different side to many of the stories and assertions
made by him during the music session. In deference to the speaker and
panelists of the business session, the guests and the organizers, I
elected to not address his positions there and then but it would be
disservice to the industry in particular and the nation in general if
these grievous misrepresentations are allowed to be documented
unchallenged.
Mr. Ogungbe and Kennis Music did not create many of the problems
bedeviling the music industry but in my opinion, didn’t do enough to
fight them either. If anything, his actions and inactions, inadvertently
but significantly weakened others who were hell bent on taking on the
problems. Let me explain.
Joey Ukpong of Styl Plus Music reached out to me early 2006 in a
bid to secure Now Muzik’s support for their price re-adjustment move for
“Expressions”, the group’s forthcoming sophomore CD. About a year
earlier, they had pushed Styl Plus’ debut 4 track, 1 remix EP,
“Olufunmi” on jewel cases at N500.00 per unit retail price and it had
been hugely successful. Here they were, planning a March 2006 release of
an 11 track full length album that market forces a.k.a Alaba pirates
dictate cannot be sold for a penny more than N250 retail. It was a
bitter pill to swallow so Joey met up with me at our Maryland office to
sell a proposition. He said they wanted to insist on a N400 per CD
position but reckoned the chances of success would be higher if other
top artistes agreed to push their products at the same price. He said he
came to us first because Now Muzik represented at that time, a crop of
heavy hitters on the scene. And we did. 2face, Sunny Neji, African China
and Ruggedman were clients of ours but there was a limitation. Some of
these artistes recorded under other labels and the power to make such
decision resided with the labels. 2face was on Kennis Music and Kennis
was the most influential label at the time so naturally, Baba Keke’s, as
we fondly call him, was our first port of call.
Ever blunt and firm, Mr. Ogungbe told Don T, my partner and I
that the move was doomed for failure. He posited that the only solution
to the piracy scourge was for us to toe the line of the marketers and
allow the ones who have been duly licensed by the labels to distribute
the music, sell at a price that’s competitive with what the pirates
offered. His belief was that the focus should be on pushing volume. Just
as the likes of T-Joe and Obaino had argued, if we crashed the price to
a point where the margin is narrowed down to about N10 – N25, pirates
would be significantly discouraged from the trade. Then the label will
be “allowed” to push units in the millions in peace and everyone would
be fine. Really? We left downcast and terrified.
After deep analysis of the discussion, we concluded that for a
label with the media might that Kennis possessed at the time, it
probably was logical for them to adopt that approach and depend on huge
volume to break even and make profit. For the rest of the industry
however, it portended doom. Promotion is expensive worldwide. Nigeria
isn’t an exception. Mass electronic media push budget for the regular
label would easily exceed recording and packaging cost many times over
and make it increasingly difficult to break even on a N25 per CD – or
less- income. For Kennis, they were in heaven. They had access to an
obscene amount of airtime on radio and television and made damned good
use of it. Their music and talent were engaging content for their
television and radio gigs which earned them good money and in turn,
served as marketing and promo platforms for their music and artistes.
Genius! More so, when for a good while, the competition was subpar and
the ratings were in their favour. They ran the roost. A lot of industry
guys cowered and sucked up to them for a bit of shine time so it was
VERY CONVENIENT to adopt the “crash the price and push for volume”
philosophy. Keke Ogungbe and Kennis Music did what no one could knock
them for – look out for themselves – ONLY.
Of course, Styl Plus Music and Ahbu Ventures put out
“Expressions” in March 2006, sold their CDs at N400 for the first 10
days or so and then- BANG! The pirates unleashed their cheaper
alternative. The rest of us didn’t actively support their brave move,
and they failed. But the failure was really ours as a collective. Soon
afterwards the retail price dropped to N200 and then to N150. The
marketers put pressure on the replicating plants to crash production
price per unit to N25. Sleeves were pegged at N5 and wholesale pricing
sashayed between N45-N50 leaving a N20 maximum mark up for marketer,
label and artiste to share. The replicating plants were quick to realize
that the boom was effectively over. The cost of operations wasn’t going
to be sustainable at N25 per CD and some watched their operations
shrink weekly. Some closed shop in no time. We had started selling the
plastic sound carrier and paper jacket with a tiny mark up. The music,
the content had lost all value. The industry was on a free fall to
implosion. We cried out and started work towards some form of organized
resistance.
I gave an interview and posited that the music business would
implode in 18 months if we didn’t rise up to the threat posed by piracy
and improper packaging and pricing. If I was the one Mr. Ogungbe was
referring to when he talked about “somebody who said the industry was
dead in a bid to seek relevance” and proudly added “and I told people
who asked me that it was their industry that was dead, not mine”, it is
indeed unfortunate.
Some of us didn’t agree with his approach. We didn’t think it was
feasible to build a business model that depended on moving units in the
millions for sustainability. We knew that five hundred thousand units
was a difficult mark to hit even in the US, one million was special.
That’s why they awarded a platinum plaque for such achievement. We
recognized that records moved 100,000 units in places like SA and the
label bosses pop champagne. We reckoned that 100,000 units to the
Nigerian label at that rate was N1,500,000 max – less maybe 40/50
royalty to the artiste – less than half the cost or recording the album
in the first place not to mention additional costs to package, shoot
videos and promote. We didn’t just agree with Mr. Ogungbe. Kennis Music
may have been satisfied with cheap products, low budget packaging and
heavy hype to sustain its business but not everyone agreed. To the likes
of O’Jez, Storm Records and emerging forces like Square Records and Mo”
Hits, quality packaging must match hype. They invested in quality
photography, styling, videos and the industry responded in appreciation.
People wanted their products to look appealing. They wanted multiple
paged packaging to allow space for detailed credits, lyrics, pictures
and the like. N5 per jacket wasn’t going to deliver that. So you can
understand my sense of alarm when part of Mr. Ogungbe’s paper stated
thus:
“As a people, we deserve the best and quality product. We should
never compromise quality on the alter of cheapness. Pirated works can
never stand the test of time because the quality is ever and
embarrassingly poor”
We came together and started the resistance conversions under the
aegis of Music Business Forum at Sweet Sensation, Isaac John, Ikeja.
MBF became AM.B-Pro and would later close ranks with eight other
industry associations to form the Nigerian Music Industry Coalition. We
engaged the NCC, the office of the AGF, the presidency, one another and
worked tirelessly towards tackling the piracy problem and resolving the
long-drawn collective management imbroglio. We have been in the trenches
working with the government, the NCC to fight piracy at great personal
cost and risk. The hitherto impregnable Alaba was demystified. They have
been a series of raids and arrests. The historic prosecution of the
Alaba king of pirates sent a strong warning to the criminals that the
NCC and the industry were no longer taking things lying down. Mr.
Ogungbe has made little or no contribution that I am aware of, to the
fight. Instead, he has continued to stand by an illegal organization
that has continually displayed contempt for the law and attacked the
same NCC that has worked with stake-holders to fight back the piracy he
protests thus:
“Record label owners today see music as bad investment due to the
monstrous problem of piracy. It is time that practitioners of the
industry should rise up to the challenge posed by piracy as it is
killing the Artist, the Record Label owners, the Investors and the
Economy”
I want to believe that I am not the only one who noticed the
inconsistency between what Mr. Ogungbe’s written speech conveyed and
what his spontaneous comments/outbursts communicated: How else does one
connect the statement:
“I am encouraged by the recent development in the music industry
as it relates to royalty. The tempo should be sustained. When a musician
knows that the more airtime his works gets, the more income he earns
which is timeless as music content utilization by broadcast stations and
some recreational centres; use works that have mass appeal. Artistes
and producers based on this are challenged to produce good works to have
that followership”.
with the call thus:
“There should not be pirates in the name of collecting societies”
In an obvious attempt to discredit COSON, Mr. Ogungbe advanced
the dangerous argument that broadcast stations should have the right to
choose which body to license music from based on the repertoire and the
power to do competitive bargaining for same. For a long time, some of us
disagreed with proponents of a sole CMO situation in Nigeria and this
was one of the main arguments advanced by the likes of Mr. Laolu Akins,
Mr. Toju Ejueyitchie and Chief Tony Okoroji. They were resolute in their
belief that multiple CMOs will breed chaos and become a powerful tool
in the hands of users who are unwilling to pay. They maintained that at
the end of the day desperate rights owners or their reps will make it
impossible to establish and sustain reasonable standards and that
multiple system will consequently not deliver the expected dividends to
right owners in general. For a gesture of support for his position, he
turned to Mr. Chris Obosi whose Megalectrics brand has indeed signed a
licensing agreement with COSON and can’t be said to be in agreement with
Mr. Ogungbe’s position. To all those who have remained unconvinced that
multiple CMOs for Nigeria will work against rights owners, Mr. Ogungbe
just presented proof that government made the right choice by approving
only one CMO for a category of works!
I need answers. How can the industry, COSON, the broadcast
stations “sustain the tempo” when Mr. Ogungbe functions as a top
executive in a media empire that have so far refused to pay royalties?
How can we entrench the culture of royalty payments when he continues to
serve on the board of an illegal organization whose sole claim to
legitimacy is a PRS affiliation that has been nullified for over two
years? Maybe Mr. Mayo Ayilaran has not thought it expedient to inform
the rest of the board and the members that MCSN does not have any
affiliation with PRS anymore. But then again, maybe they know but don’t
think it is of any consequence.
I have a bunch of other issues yet to address and I am sure Mr.
Ogungbe has a different side to my different side of the story so far.
Here’s my suggestion. Let’s have an open session, on live radio or
television. Let’s have an open debate and settle these issues once and
for all. Pick the date, time and venue sir. Just two hours of your time.
The industry would be the better for it. I am waiting!
Efe Omorogbe
Kenny Ogungbe has not made a reply, but he is a man of soundbites,
famous for his biting answers. So here’s to hoping he’s a creature of
habit, and will rise to give a fitting reply. Maybe he’ll accept the
challenge. Maybe not. But while we wait on that, one thing remains
certain:
There’s a beef, and it’s between labels…Kennis Music versus Now Music.
What
is even more significant to me is that I can still remember the
emotions I felt on the day I got married and comparing it to how I feel
today about my spouse, the only difference is in the depth, quality and
understanding, all of which are much richer, heightened and of a
superior quality. I find this indeed something to celebrate.