Ghanaian music group, Alabaster Box, has provided an update on its ongoing legal battle with rapper Medikal, alleging that his song Welcome to Africa infringes on their track Akwaaba.
According to Alabaster Box, the first 10 seconds of Medikal’s song reproduce elements of their original work, and both the title and certain verses indicate that Welcome to Africa was derived from Akwaaba.
The group’s legal team initially demanded the immediate removal of the track from all digital and traditional platforms, a request they say was ignored. Alabaster Box is now seeking general damages of GH₵10 million and exemplary damages of GH₵5 million for the alleged infringement and the association of their brand with inappropriate lyrics in Medikal’s song.
Speaking in an interview, a representative of the group explained the challenges in the legal process:
“The issue is still in court. We searched for him to serve him but we couldn’t reach him. The court granted us leave to serve him, which we’ve done, and other processes are ongoing,” he said.
He added that initial attempts to communicate through intermediaries were unsuccessful:
“We called his manager initially, and they appointed a middleman to speak to our manager. So, we also appointed someone to talk to them. Our lawyers then advised us to leave everything to them. When they attempted to reach us, communication stopped. The lawyers are handling it now.”
Alabaster Box also addressed collaboration offers from other artists:
“Two artistes reached out to collaborate with us, but we did not accept because we are the only ones who know why. If you’ve used our song, at least talk to us and give us a chance to decide, but you didn’t. Now people are saying all sorts of things on the internet,” he said.
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