The founder of the popular street festival “Chalewote Street Art Festival,” Mantse Aryeequaye, has sued rap pastor Obrafour and music producer Dave Hammer for allegedly claiming sole ownership of the famous “killer cut blood” phrase.
According to him, “Killer Cut” is “his artistic phrase, which was used on the song “Oye Ohene” by Obrafour, and the rapper later registered it without seeking his permission.
Last year, the ownership of the phrase, used in Obrafour’s track “Oye Ohene,” came under serious scrutiny after the rapper sued American-based Canadian artiste, Drake for using it in his track without Obrafour’s approval.
Mantse, in the new suit, accused Obrafour of claiming ownership of the phrase and copyrighting it in the US in September 2022.
He stated that “his artistic work, in the form of a spoken word titled “Killer Cut,” was used on the song ‘Oye Ohene” by the first defendant, Obrafour, with permission, but without transfer of any rights, nor permission to register the work as his own, or receive any payments from its subsequent use by anyone in any form.
Mantse indicated that “the “Killer Cut,” which was used by the first defendant in his song, “is separate and distinct from the song recorded by the defendants.”It was recorded separately and subsequently infused into the 1st Defendant’s song by the 2nd Defendant (Hammer), mainly to enhance or improve the song.”
According to Mantse, after knowing of Drake’s request to use that part of the “Oye Ohene” track, he called for a meeting with both Obrafour and Hammer, but none showed up.
To his dismay, Obrafour had registered the track with the phrase inclusive in the US, “robbing him of his intellectual property and seeking to receive payment for plaintiff’s work exclusively.”
Mantse called the rapper’s actions malicious with “clear nefarious intent” to divert and use royalties belonging to him.
He insisted that he owned the intellectual property of the popular phrase and prayed to the court to declare it so.
In addition, he called on the court to restrain Obrafour from demanding and receiving payment for the catchphrase “killer cut.”
Mantse also demanded the court order Hammer to not only relinquish all his works to him but also submit a record of all his works (with Hammer), including ones that have been used in other tracks.
Among other things, he was also demanding “general damages against the 1st defendant for misappropriating Plaintiff’s work and actively seeking to profit from it whilst evading all calls and efforts to rectify his duplicitous conduct” and “costs including full indemnity for legal costs that could have been avoided.”
Although the suit was filed in July 2023, Mantse revealed in a Facebook post that Hammer and Obrafour had been evading being served by the court’s bailiff.
As such, his lawyers applied for an Order of Substitution, allowing them to serve the two on their personal WhatsApp, Facebook, and Notice Board of the High Court, Accra.
Source: Ghana/MaxTV/MaxFM/max.com.gh/Joyceline Natally Cudjoe
