Gospel musician Philipa Baafi has declined to comment on the issue of music royalties in Ghana, specifically refusing to disclose whether she has received any payments throughout her career.
The musician gave this response when host Eddie Ray posed a direct question during an interview on the mid-morning show on Rainbow Radio 87.5FM.
When asked to reveal the highest amount of money she had ever received in royalties, Ms. Baafi strongly discouraged the host from pursuing the topic.
“Don’t go there with this question. Don’t ask this question. The royalties are not forthcoming, and even if any royalties are paid, the amount is too insignificant to be mentioned on radio,” she stated emphatically.
Call for Remuneration for Church Musicians
Despite her silence on royalties, Philipa Baafi voiced strong support for the suggestion that musicians who play for churches should receive remuneration.
She acknowledged that while gospel music—whether commercial or performed in a church setting—is a calling dedicated to evangelism for the Kingdom, “the good book states that a man would have to eat from his sweat.”
“I acknowledge that music is a calling and meant to edify Christ; however, whoever works in the house of the Lord should be appreciated,” she stressed. “There are those who disagree, but what they fail to recognise is that musicians invest significantly to record their songs, pay for promotions, hire a crew, and engage instrumentalists who must be paid for their services.”
“It was not like that in the past, but today, things have changed, and we have to recognise that musicians invest a lot in their craft and we cannot ask them to do things for free.”
Ms. Baafi revealed that she avoided making monetary demands of churches, only asking them to appreciate her crew. However, she stated that some churches have taken advantage of gospel musicians.
“This is one of the reasons why gospel musicians now have managers to handle these issues because they have been taken advantage of for years,” she added.
By: Rainbowradioonline.com/Ghana
