Nigerian sensation Shallipopi opened up about the copyright issues he had with his hit single ‘Obapluto’.
In July Shallipopi faced a copyright infringement claim over his single ‘Obapluto’ on which he sampled the record ‘Ovonramwen n’ Ogbaisi’ by veteran singer Pa Monday Edo Igbinidu. This infringement led to Pa Monday Edo filing a lawsuit against Shallipopi for 200 million naira.
During an interview with the ‘Zero Condition’podcast, Shallipopi opened up about the circumstances that led to the copyright infringement. The Benin-born singer implied that artists hailing from Benin City often overlook their cultural heritage, opting instead to draw inspiration from various Nigerian tribes and cultures in their music. Shallipopi preferred not to be linked or compared to such artists. This conviction motivated him to release a song specifically dedicated to the indigenous people of Edo/Benin.
The ‘ObaPluto’ crooner said, “You know artists that come from Benin city dey always run. It’s either dey use other tribes to sing their music or they never come back to Benin again. I know wan be that artist wey be like say I kon forget where I for come”.
