Ignorance is creating thieves….

Eish forgive me for the title, I was simply just trying not to be “boring”. This week I have chosen to go the “boring” way. I am talking to serious stuff. I already feel like Raisedon Baya or Josh Nyapimbi who are well known for the serious issues like cultural policies and intangible heritage. Last week I wrote a piece about copyright law, but I scratched the surface. I and a few others have been discussing this serious issue during the course of the week and because of some of the cases and examples, I was pushed to do a follow up article.

Though not fully in detail because of my word count and the need to make this an interesting read. We will discuss Copyright, Patents and Trademarks. This world of law, can be murky and confusing, often leading to protracted legal battles and expensive settlements. If you plan to produce media that uses any outside creative influence, you would do well to research some of these issues and learn what is okay and what might land you in some hot water. None of us would like to end up in trouble because we were ignorant of copyright, patent and trademark laws.

These three are confusing. Each is often referred to as “intellectual property.” When someone uses a copyright or patent or trademark without permission, we talk about “infringement.” Most importantly, each one gives the owner exclusive rights to the work, meaning the owner has the right to prevent anyone else from using their work. What exactly is the difference between these three forms of intellectual property protection? A copyright protects the expression of a person’s ideas. Copyright protection is given to creative works like writing, computer programs, music, lyrics, graphic designs, sculpture, photographs, movies, and sound recordings. The expression must be “original,” which, in this context, means a work that is not an exact copy of another work. Patents protect inventions.

In order to qualify for a patent, an invention must be novel, which means that it is something that is different in an important way from all previous inventions. The invention must also be useful—not necessarily important, but it must have some use and it must also be non-obvious. Non-obvious means that someone who understands the technical area of the invention would see the invention as a surprising and significant development in the field.

A trademark protects something that is used to identify where a product or a service comes from. A trademark describes something and is not the thing being described. An example of a trademark would be a corporate identity, such as a logo, which is placed on products to inform consumers that the product came from that particular company.

Before I forget I would like to thank Austrian based Vusa Mkhaya and William Nyandoro for all the help in writing this piece. Most of our brushes with copyright law is linked to music. Vusa brought up one important point about the song In the Jungle which was done by Solomon Linda and made famous by the movie Lion King. That song has been covered by many acts especially Imbube groups who sadly have never asked for permission. Second case is about the globalization of TV, with the likes of DSTV now creating channels that take works from the whole of Africa. There is bound to be problems. I know it’s nice to have a love scene and throw in a Phil Collins song, it fits perfectly. But what if one day Tsotsi (local) is played on Mzansi Magic and voila 15 international songs registered with Sony that the producers liked and just placed are there for the world to hear? At the end of the day be it using international or local songs, our film industry is chief at copyright infringement. I will be surprised if anyone ever got permission to use those songs in the movies.

Clive Chigubu

This topic just has a lot of things to touch on and I know I have just scratched the surface. I would have loved to discuss how and when copyrights expire and become free to use, or even talk about the Bafana Bafana issue, where someone registered the name before SAFA did and it caused serious problems for SAFA, but this topic is just too broad it needs a conference not a column. Please note I borrowed a few lines from Google (just in case someone comes after me).In more relevant stuff Umahlekisa Comedy club will today try and warm us up with their jokes. They are presenting a comedy show dubbed Khonapho Khonapho.I can’t wait to watch Ntando, Clive Chigubhu, Nomsa D and H.O at Hope Centre. We have not watched comedy in a while, I will review the show next week.

Until then, be safe…

 

Caught with hand in the cookie jar…

Ok, maybe the title is a little dramatic. This piece is inspired by an event that happened on Facebook this week. It’s nothing new really, but when it happens to people that are close to you, you suddenly realize this stuff is real. There is a few possible views that one can come out with, in looking at the issue pitting two talented local artists. One could look at it as pure thievery .or simple harmless fun or even an appreciation of ones works.

Mothusi in grey suit

Unfortunately there was a complainant, a jury and witnesses but no defendant. Complaining was Mothusi Bashimane a local boy practicing his art in South Africa, he is the brains behind the famed Madlela Skhobokhobo, a comedy DVD doing the rounds in the country and South Africa. He is also a recorded artist who sang the song Khumbula Ekhaya (which is the bone of contention).The witness is Mmep Productions who recorded the defendant and posted the video on YouTube.Ishmael Muvingi a talented local artist and potential top artist who goes by the stage name Litshe is the defendant. Bashimane claims to have accidentally “bumped” onto his video on YouTube and it did not even feature him, in simple terms it is his song and a video was done without his ok. Mmep Productions say they offered a service but did not know the song was not Litshe’s. Surprisingly though in editing the video, Mmep did credit Mothusi as the composer.

Ishmael Muvingi aka Litshe

So enter us the Jury, as expected with social media we are all opinionated. Majority are saying the issue should be discussed, others are settling scores indirectly but now and again people keep talking about suing Litshe. I know Mothusi must have been really hurt seeing his song online, but to a certain extent I think he should be smiling that someone thinks so highly of his music they will even do a video of it. I had an opportunity to look at it before it was taken down by the United Kingdom based Mmep Productions. It was a fair attempt and the song is not bad either. The practice of covering

Screen shot of video in question

previously-performed songs has been prevalent in music history for several decades, many new artists looking to build their profiles in the modern music industry release cover songs by currently popular artists, often putting a unique spin on their performance in order to showcase their stylistic originality and also gain the interest of fans to support their careers.

As I mentioned in the beginning, this issue of “borrowing other peoples music is not new, even to us in Zimbabwe. Winky D was accused of stealing most of his songs from underground Jamaican artists. It was said he would just change the lyrics to Shona and tweak the songs a little bit. A few months back Jah Prayzah borrowed one of his award winning songs from a Ghanaian artist and forgot to mention it to the artist and us. Top artists like The Rolling Stones, Shakira, Blacked Eyed Peas, Madonna, Rod Steward, Led Zepplin and Will.i.am amongst others have been sued successfully for borrowing other people’s music. A few months back Robin Thicke and Pharell Williams were sued by the Marvin Gaye family for US$7.4million for stealing the hit song Blurred lines which sounds exactly like Marvin Gaye’s “got to give it up”

Robin and Pharell

Far from the above topic, I honestly think there are no more original ideas or maybe there are just a few originals from the millions that are borrowed. In 1998 the legendary B.B King once said, “I don’t think anybody steals anything; all of us borrow.”

At this point in time I will introduce the thorny issue of copyright law. It is important to know exactly what a copyright is in order to understand how it is to be used or applied in a legal setting. Copyright laws state that copyrights are legally exclusive rights that are granted to the author or creator of a creative work. Among these rights are the rights to copy, distribute, adapt, and amend the work. The right to copy, under copyright laws, is often applied in terms of the right to control the copying of copyrighted works, which means it prevents others from copying the work without permission.

Possibly the most important among copyright laws, will be copyright infringement. It refers to the unauthorized use of copyrighted works. The unauthorized use of copyrighted works is done in such a way that it violates copyright laws and the exclusive rights of the creator or owner as granted by law. In modern applications, this would include the piracy of CDs, DVDs, and similar media in regards to music and audiovisual works. But how many artists have their works copyrighted? Until next week, be safe…

 

Keep leading the way comrades

I must confess I really wanted to run with Indlela Ibuzwa Kwabaphambili as my title for this week’s piece. But I shelved the idea after a few intra personal questions and answers. I could hear others say who does he think he is, ubona angani nguMthunywa lowu? Let me hasten to mention though that it is still a befitting title.

There is an often-quoted African saying, “It takes a village to raise a child.” It is not just relatives and friends but anyone who interacts with a child that has a responsibility for them. What this practically means is that in public spaces if someone sees a child doing something wrong or getting into danger then they will step in, even before asking the parent if they can intervene.

I believe I am one person that has been raised by a village. I mean the arts industry village.

Nkululeko I Dube

I have come to a point where I feel I have done things and people are now paying attention to what I do. I have been involved in projects that I never dreamed of and met the kind of people that are only seen on TV’s and papers. I want to be quick to say that all that I am now is 30% me and 70% village. This could be one of those haaaa this guy is blabbering pieces, but who knows it could push or inspire another to dream.

I started my art on stage with renowned poet Thabo J. Nkomo of border voices in Plumtree. He pushed me to like art. He is now a travelled teacher having taught art in the UK and South Africa (his current base).Since then I have met Themba “Giant” Ncube who introduced me to visual arts, I can make metal sculpture, I even made a few thousand dollars and Pulas in Namibia and Botswana, respectively, through visual arts.

Saimon Mambazo Phiri

After that foundation I have rubbed shoulders with Mqoqi Nkomo of Umdumo Wesizwe, Cont Mhlanga, Saimon Mambazo Phiri, Raisedon Baya, Sarah Mpofu, Jeys Marabini, William Nyandoro, Matesu Dube, Memory Kumbota, Javas Sibanda, Sihlangu Dlodlo, Nicholas Moyo, Babongile Sikhonjwa and Nkululeko I Dube to name a few. That’s like one of the most colourful families ever. Even the Kardashians will be drooling at my amazing village. Mqoqi led me to my passion (music), I travelled the world with Umdumo Wesizwe. Saimon Mambazo saw my potential outside of the stage and introduced me to management and Ibumba Festival. I know it was hard for my colleagues at Umdumo when I first started with Ibumba, they felt betrayed. It was at a time when groups would not really interact and it was tabooish to work with two groups. So Mbazo introduced me to his then administrator Javas Sibanda.

Javas Sibanda

He is the man that introduced me to the real side of computers (not computer games, movies and music), I now can do just about anything with a computer. The three of us made things happen, I started to grow and made friends that drove my other passion (media). I became THE press liaison thanks to Lenin, Delta and Smiso. Other groups and institutions started knocking at my door.

Raisedon Baya

I then met Raisedon Baya, he wanted someone to handle press for Intwasa Arts Festival KoBulawayo, I accepted. He believed in me some more. I never imagined his kind making friends with my kind. He fed my hunger to grow, I started to dream even bigger. The honour of giving a platform to many artists in Zimbabwe compares to none. Giving back to the community became my number one dream. Festivals became my number one passion, I was part of something amazing from Ibumba Festival to Intwasa. I remembered how WOMAD and Glastonbury made me smile, I created a festival concept as a way of giving back to the community, Nkululeko I Dube and Sihlangu Dlodlo bought into the idea and Beitbridge International Festival of Arts was born.

Cont Mhlanga

Many have helped in creating brand Nkue Nkala. I remember when Jeys Marabini asked me to help him with his festival Bulawayo Comes Alive I was over the moon. Babongile said either do it in style or go home.The advice and support I have gotten from Matesu Dube, Memory Kumbota, William Nyandoro, Sarah Mpofu and Nicholas Moyo is that kind that costs millions but they have been there to guide and pick up the pieces for free. Cont Mhlanga is a legend in the industry, he has my number, he calls now and again (still overwhelms me).The moral of this story is, you are not just an artist or just anybody. There are no boundaries. We can grow and keep growing. Align yourself and dare to dream. I am still growing and I believe.

Until next, week be safe…

 

A war of Dancing Shoes and Words….

The venue is Small City Hall and it’s full to the brim. All walks of artists are present and so is the media fraternity, print and electronic. I swear you can almost cut through the tension like a hot knife through butter. Its media on one side and artists on the other. Why are we here? Why are two bodies that are supposed to work very well together here and not in a celebratory mood? Frowns, frowns and no smiles. Where are the people that we all save? Maybe they can explain why we are all here? Then as I am asking myself those questions and searching so hard for answers, a very familiar face stands up, from where I am standing I cannot tell if its Mambazo , Nkululeko Dube or Sarah Mpofu, all I know is it’s an artists face. Finally an answer or clue as to why we are here may be coming.

The arts figure opens his mouth, I lightly cover my ears hoping for a screaming, but no he/she gently reads. Dear Journalist. We are two sides of a coin and we need each other. We have a few complaints or rather things that we feel you should change. We could be wrong but we hope something will come out of this gathering. Honestly why don’t most of your guys research before going to print? How does Alick Zulu become Snake? Joe Maseko become Owen Maseko, Iyasa become Siyaya, Zambezi Express become a festival, Memory Kumbota an actor become Director of Umbiko KaMadlenya a piece he starred in? Mambazo become choreographer of Intwasa? The list is endless.

Why do you keep using old images when we have obviously moved from the past? We honestly feel like you are not covering much of our events or selling our art for what it is worth. When last was ZBC at a local event? We have new songs and new productions everyday but all that makes papers is our scandal. Where do you guys get off pulling our Facebook statuses and making them stories? Why are we assigned students who have no grounding or appreciation of the arts? I rest here.

There is a lot of murmuring from the floor, mostly from the journalist side. Then another familiar face stands up and again I can’t tell if it’s Lawson Mabhena, Lenin Ndebele, Bongani Ndlovu or one of those students assigned to the arts. Anyway in similar fashion, he/she says. Dear Artist. It’s sad that you actually think we have not been covering you enough. Do you know how many pieces we have done about your works and sang the high heavens praising you even though most of the work was sub-standard? As much as we appreciate that we have made mistakes here and there please bear with us, we are also learning and familiarising ourselves with the industry. It’s not our fault that those who had grounding have been moved to more serious pages of the paper or have been promoted.

But dear artist, how do you expect us to know everything when you guys are not updating your websites or Facebook pages. Some of you do not even have those. Do you know how cheap it is to run a blog? There you have control and it’s very cheap. Why not just post all your history on those pages, then you can start blaming us for not researching. If you think we are joking, run a Google search on your brand let’s see how much info is available (a few discontent voices from the artists). Speaking of Facebook, you guys are public figures and your confession on your social page is gospel to us. Tweet and Facebook responsibly. We are a business and are about selling papers, we will sell your works, but come on, scandal sells more. At that very moment I found the voice in me, something like a speech from Martin Luther King. As I tried to open my mouth. I woke up from this dream, sweating, sad and thinking, we just need each other. What a dream.

Now back to my 5 June article. The Oliver Mtukudzi book is now available in the city. Judging from the pre released transcripts that must be an exciting read. I really want to read it. So I took a walk to Innov8 book shop.Damn that book is expensive, $40.like really? I am not fully pro piracy but I will confess, I don’t see myself buying that book. I hope it will be available in the streets soon. It could be a lesson to performing artists but not when it is pegged for just the elite. Until next week, be safe….