Nominated Senator Crystal Asige, a former member of Sol Generation, has sued the music label associated with the popular group Sauti Sol, accusing them of exploiting her.
In her lawsuit, Asige alleges that the label took advantage of her disability and used lyrics she composed for their hit song Extravaganza without paying her royalties.
She claims her intellectual property rights were violated, further citing unpaid dues for her contributions to the songs Extravaganza and 1919 to Forever.
While testifying in court on Monday, Asige said her lyrics and melody were incorporated into Extravaganza, a track from Sauti Sol’s Midnight Train album, without her consent.
The court heard that although she was credited as a co-writer, no formal negotiations were conducted, and she did not receive any royalties for her work.
She told the court that she had composed the third line of the song during a recording session at Snow-Ball Studio in Nyari Estate, Nairobi.
The senator also disclosed that she contributed to another song in the Sol Generation album, 1919 to Forever, which was released on the group’s platforms without her knowledge or approval.
“I later learned that a Sh5 million deal had been struck, purportedly on my behalf, yet I received no payment,” she said.
Additionally, Asige accusedhe label of improperly sharing her solo song, Lenga, on Sol Generation’s platforms, despite its success on social media, without offering her adequate compensation.
Asige claims Sol Generation offered her development training in exchange for her copyrights, but she argued that the agreement was ambiguous and failed to meet standard contractual norms.
On the issue of disability exploitation, she accused the label of using her condition as a marketing strategy to solicit funds. She further alleged that when she fought for her rights, she was dismissed from the label.
According to her, Sol Generation told her she was the “weakest singer” in the team and claimed the company was too broke to pay royalties.
However, during cross-examination by Lawyer Maloba for Sol Generation, Asige conceded that the label holds 100% master rights under the existing agreement.
She clarified, however, that Sauti Sol cannot collect royalties owed to her as she did not sign the necessary agreements. Nonetheless, she admitted she lacked evidence proving royalties were collected without her consent.
Asige urged the court to compel Sol Generation to compensate her, emphasizing that her creativity and dedication deserved recognition. She also called for the protection of other artists who may face similar challenges.
