Used “Jerusalem” for a video campaign? You may get a bill

Master KG – Jerusalem it was the sound of 2020. It’s a song that launched countless self-made videos and even hit the president last September.

“There can be no better way to celebrate our South Africanness than to join a global phenomenon that is spreading around the world, and this is the dance of _Jerusalema_. So I urge you all to accept this challenge.”

Many South Africans and other people around the world have accepted the challenge. Jobs connected, and people sent their kids to join them by posting their videos on social media.

Type “Jerusalem Challenge” on YouTube and the results will go through the pages. The official music video has garnered more than 344 million views on YouTube. The KG master received the “Best African Act” award at the MTV European Music Awards, beating among other Nigerian superstars Burna Boy and Rema.

News over the past few days that Warner International has been sending royalty bills to various video posters in Germany has caused a stir on social media – and only a little panic.

The music giant has accused various German government agencies of using the song in their versions. So what does this mean for us? Can anyone who filled boring downtime during a blockade, improving gaits and sharing efforts, count on their problems?

Eyewitness news spoke with Dumisani Motzamai, an entertainment lawyer and legal and business person Open Mic Productions – a record company Master KG and Nomcebo Zikode.

According to him, some people accepted the challenge for their own benefit.

“We’ve been following the news that Warner, our partners internationally, many on social media have taken on the challenge,‘ You guys are greedy, ’we’re doing this because of social [distancing], we are all affected because of COVID ‘and I think the case is complete. But there were different versions of this challenge. There are situations when a child and their family are in their living room and they make a call, or are on the street and make a call. This is great. But we’ve seen these issues drag on too far, and that’s where people actually put pressure on their brands, ”he said.

Companies and brands that use the song to boost their own social capital are an issue that Open Mic will also address, he said.

“I saw brands where you could see an unmanned aerial vehicle that reflected the view of the company’s yard, then you see their workshop, they design products, they definitely paint every product they sell. The song sounds in and because it plays in the background, now I’m interested to see what this company is doing, “he said. “If it’s for private use and has nothing to do with the commercialization of the song, in other words, using the song to use the brand and in order to make a certain brand visible, there’s nothing wrong with that.”

The choice of companies and brands that use the song for well-being, between people who use it for fun, is not cut and does not dry up, he said.

“There was a fine line here. Some of them will show their logo in the beginning, and they’re all dancing. But some of them, if you look at them, it’s all about the brand, the company that makes the challenge and little about the challenge. It’s those who found Warner and Open Mic.If the challenge is accepted and someone dances with their family separately and has nothing to do with brand approval, it has nothing to do with using a song to click on a specific brand and put the brand in the face of the people with the song in the background, then it’s great. “

So what makes up a brand or advertisement? Presumably, these heartfelt videos of union health workers taking the call will not be targeted.

“These are critical examples, which we will certainly not follow. You can see that they used it in the context of lifting the spirits in difficult times and within the call made by the president,” he said.

So if you did it for fun or to lift the nation’s spirits, you’re fine. But if you used music for business, not really. Motsamai said Open Mic is considering local examples of brands that exploit the song, and will also ask for payment from them, as did Warner International. While he didn’t have the exact number of companies they were going for, he said there were “quite a few” of them.

“We’ll start politely [asking for fees] locally because we saw that there were a lot of line passes. We owe not only Open Mic, but also the people who participated in it. [Open Mic] belongs to the master, but we are also obliged to pay fees to people whose sound is built-in, whose characteristics the master has, and in this case it is Master KG and Nomcebo, ”Motsama explained.

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He also explained how the fee is paid when a song is used for commercial results.

“There are royalties that we, as Open Mic, pay for synchronization licenses. So we have to make sure that we will hold this copy and make sure that certain types of licensing are paid so that we can pay them as well. Yes, it’s the income that comes to us as homeowners, but we’re also obligated to pay our artists. ”

It should be remembered that all artists who create this music should also eat. It was a very difficult journey for their community as global blockades destroyed for them opportunities.

So if you’ve accepted the challenge, transferred the kids into formation and posted the results online, you’re not going to get a weighty bill – or any other – on the matter.

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