Music trade stakeholders on the MTN Ghana Digital Music Convention in Accra on Wednesday known as for stronger copyright administration and fairer royalties as artistes earn much less regardless of the expansion of digital streams.
The convention, held at MTN Home, introduced collectively over 100 members together with artists, rights managers, publishers and digital platform managers to deal with the structural gaps which are stopping Ghana’s increasing digital music attain from resulting in sustainable incomes.
Diana Hopeson, founding father of GH Music Publishing, identified the core difficulty in blunt phrases. “It is not time for MTN to be seen as only a telecom firm.” She known as for a future the place artists can promote music straight by means of digital platforms, somewhat than relying solely on ringtone-based income instruments.
He confused that stronger rights administration and improved royalty buildings are important for artists to seize truthful worth from digital consumption, noting that present preparations don’t adequately reward creators relative to the scale of their audiences.
Bessa Simmons, President of the Musicians Union of Ghana (MUSIGA), emphasised this level, insisting that institutional illustration and formal participation inside trade our bodies stays the cornerstone of negotiations that end in truthful outcomes for musicians. He known as for stronger solidarity amongst creators to enhance collective bargaining energy.
Including the info dimension, media and leisure government Baba Sadiq advised members that essentially the most underutilized worth of digital platforms is not only the attain they supply, however the viewers intelligence they generate. He argued that artists who perceive viewers habits, geography, and engagement patterns are in constructing lasting careers.
MTN Ghana’s Senior Supervisor, Digital Companies and Verticals, Bless Sefenu Agorjo, admitted that streaming income alone typically requires consumption and remains to be out of attain for many rising artists. He sought to place Caller Ring Again Tone (CRBT) as a complementary monetization channel alongside platforms corresponding to PlayUP and Boomplay, whereas additional working with the Ghana Music Rights Group (GAMRO), producers and rights holders to enhance transparency throughout the worth chain.
Black Avenue Music founder and music government D-Black described CRBT as a “vastly missed income stream” and inspired artists to include it extra absolutely into their income methods.
The convention concluded with the settlement that creating sustainable incomes for Ghanaian artists requires structural reforms throughout copyright enforcement, royalty distribution, and information literacy, in addition to platform adoption.
