“We Were Paid Only 250 Bob for Our Hit Song ‘Kare’ ” P-Unit Reveals

 About 5 years ago Genge group, P-Unit released ‘Kare’ featuring Mimmo as part of their ‘Wagenge Hao’ Album.

A song that became one of the most popular songs of our generation rocking radio waves, blaring form matatu’s woofers and keeping clients happy at Kinyozi’s and salons all over Kenya.

But despite the major airplay, Boneye revealed that MCSK Offered to pay them 250 bob which they refused and they had to raise the issue with MCSK who begrudgingly coughed up 100,000 which was split three-ways.

Read the whole story below as narrated by Boneye:

Kindly allow me to summarise and give an example of the sad state of affairs…. ‪#‎MusicMatters‬
Fact: 3 Years ago MCSK offered to pay us 250/- for KARE (number one song on the African Charts then) we declined the money.

After we raised issues with MCSK and held endless meetings with the CEO Maurice Okoth we were assured that a monitoring system had been acquired. The following year I received a mere 100K and the same amount to my fellow P-UNIT members. (So this 300,000/- blanket fee seems to be the ‘artists expectations management fee’ as is in Elani’s case) what followed was articles all over the media referring to P-UNIT as ‘Highest Paid’ Artists by MCSK)

It’s only until last year that it was revealed to me that the monitoring had failed ages ago.

Fact: MCSK had never communicated about the Monitoring System’s failure, so using what logs is distribution of royalties based on over the years?
When we (under MIAKE) asked for a credible firm to audit MCSK and proposed one we preferred as members, a different firm was hurriedly forced onto the members by the office bearers at MCSK at the Machakos AGM.

As a member I’m yet to see the findings of any audit yet. Which must articulate the findings on the monitoring system.
I just shared this story with fellow artists and the public not just to fight MCSK but to share my experiences and highlight a broken system and the antics used to ‘manage the artists’ expectations’ and paint a glossy picture of a rotten truth.

It’s a fight but it’s a good fight when you know pay day is coming. The heat is on and should stay on.#‎FactsOnly‬ … ‪#‎ElaniSpeaks‬ is only a drop in the Ocean. ‪#‎wewillnotrelent‬‘Work backwards and also work forward, backwards to heal our wounds’#‎PayartistsRoyalties‬