Some seasoned musicians have queried the Copyright Society of Malawi (Cosoma) on the criteria used in determining beneficiaries of the Blank Media Levy royalties.
The group claims there are discrepancies in the manner the royalties are disbursed which has put veteran musicians at a disadvantage.
The claims come three days after some musicians received their royalties during a glamourous event that President Lazarus Chakwera presided over at Kamuzu Palace in Lilongwe.
Speaking in an interview yesterday, one of the concerned musicians Dan Chazama said the explanation that Cosoma provides on the criteria does not reflect what happens on the ground.
“In my case, it is my album which I released in 2011 that is receiving money from Cosoma. But in between that time and now I have released several singles that are also registered with Cosoma, but they are never considered. It is very surprising,” he said.
The Mudziyimbayimbabe creator said as much as the current generation is making a huge shift in the industry, the older generation also need to be considered.
He said: “For long, seasoned artists have been complaining about the same issue. If blank media levy royalties are meant to compensate artists as they say, then they are missing the point. Cosoma needs to come out clear on that one.”
Speaking separately, another seasoned musician Ben Mankhamba said the trends put the current generation of artists at an advantage over the old guard. He said it is not clear to many artists how Cosoma comes up with the royalties.
“Maybe Cosoma should also consider how old a particular creation is. We cannot expect music from our generation to be as popular as the current songs. Maybe a lot of considerations need to be made when coming up with these royalties,” he said.
But Cosoma has played down the claims, saying that the determination of the royalties is based on the data on how many times the public has used a particular song.
Cosoma public relations officer Catherine Mitungwi said: “It is usage based and not how long one has been around. The data captured in our system are those of the works that are being used. It is not about how long one has been there.”
Afro-dance musician Eli Njuchi and Driemo emerged as the highest earners in the last quarter having received K23 million each.
